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VERBAL  PITFALLS: 

A  MANUAL  OF 
1500  Words  Commonly  Misused, 


Including  all  those  the  use  of  which  in  any  sense  has  been 
questioned  by  Dean  Alford,  G.  \^'.  Moon,  Fitzed- 
ward  Hall,  Archbishop  Trench,  Wm.  C.  Hodg- 
son, W.   L.  Blacklev,  G.  F.  Graham, 
Richard  Grant  White,  M.  Scheie 
de  Vere,  Wm.  ISIathews, 
"Alfred  Ayres,"  and 
many  others. 

With  3000   References  aiul  Quotations, 


AND 


The  Ealing  of  the  Dictionaries. 
By    C.    W.    BAKDEEN, 

Editor  of  the  "School  Bulletin." 


SYRACUSE,  N.  Y.: 

C.   W.  BARDEEN,   PUBLISHER. 

1883. 

Copyright,  1883,  by  C.  W.  Bardeen, 


•1 


PREFACE. 


Of  late  years  verbal  purism  has  become,  espec- 
ially among  teachers,  almost  a  disease.  Scores  of 
estimable  people  ignore  the  thoughts  expressed  in  a 
conversation  or  newspaper  article  or  a  sermon,  in 
their  eagerness  to  ferret  out  some  of  the  few  scores 
of  words  or  expressions  which  they  are  big  with  the 
wisdom  of  just  having  learned  to  reject.  This 
would  be  puerile  enough,  even  if  their  newly  ac- 
quired information  were  always  correct.  But  it 
usually  comes  from  some  one  book,  and  most  such 
books  that  have  been  issued  either  are  superficial 
catch-pennies,  or  are  warped  by  personal  prejudice 

^      and  whims.      No  one  should  rely  upon  Dean  Al- 
f  ord's  The  Queen's  English,  till  he  has  read  The  Demi's 

^  English;  nor  should  he  put  faith  in  Richard  Grant 
White  till  he  has  read  Fitzedward  Hall's  two  books. 
In  fact  no  where  else  is  a  little  learning  so  dangerous 
a  thing.  Suppose  he  has  learned  from  Mathew's 
Words  and  their  Uses  to  say  "  I  think  you  mistake  " 
instead  of  "I  think  you  are  mistaken,"  and  has 
vaunted  his  superior  knowledge  for  a  month  or  two 


4  PREFACE. 

before  he  reads  this  paragraph  in  The  Queen's  Eng- 
lish (p.  106 ;  see  also  Graham's  Book  about  Words,  p. 
73):  "We  expect  to  hear  you  are  mistaken  ox  you 
mistake,  unless  followed  by  an  accusative,  the  mean- 
ing or  me.  When  we  hear  the  former  of  these,  we 
begin  to  consider  whether  we  are  right  or  wrong; 
when  the  latter,  we  at  once  take  the  measure  of  our 
friend,  as  one  who  has  not  long  escaped  from  the 
rules  of  the  lesser  grammarians,  by  which,  and  not 
by  the  usage  of  society,  circumstances  have  com- 
pelled him  to  learn  his  language." 

Under  that  sarcasm  he  writes,  and  perhaps  re- 
solves nevermore  to  heed  in  his  use  of  language  any 
mentor  but  habit.  Yet  he  would  be  wrong  again, 
for  there  are  expressions  in  common  use,  unquestion- 
ably some  of  them  in  his  own  vocabulary,  which 
would  stamp  him  in  many  minds  as  an  ignoramus. 
There  are  even  expressions  recognized  by  scholars 
as  wholly  legitimate  which  he  should  remember  to 
avoid  because  they  have  been  questioned  by  shallow 
critics  whose  books  or  newspaper  articles  have  had 
wide  circulation.  He  will  avoid  such  expressions, 
not  because  they  are  wrong,  but  because  they  might 
distract  attention  from  his  thoughts;  just  as  a  sensible 
man  avoids  parting  his  hair  in  the  middle,  or  say- 
ing either  and  neither,  whatever  may  be  his  person- 


PREFACE.  0 

al  preferences,  because  the  multitude  of  men  would 
-regard  the  one  and  the  other  as  affectations.  Better 
be  thought  thrice  a  dunce  than  once  a  pedant. 

Some  time  ago  the  editor  of  the  School  Bulle- 
tin was  led  by  these  considerations  to  gather  all  the 
reputable  books  on  verbal  errors  that  came  within 
his  reach,  and  to  enter  all  the  words  they  criticised 
in  one  alphabetical  list,  with  the  verdict  of  each, 
and  references  to  the  passages  where  the  word  was 
mentioned.  Subsequent  works  of  this  character 
have  been  iu  like  manner  drawn  upon;  and  he  has 
thought  that  he  might  do  service  by  printing  this 
list  for  the  use  of  those  who  have  not  either  the 
books  required  or  the  time  to  consult  them. 


REFERENCES. 


B,  GOOLD  Brown.  The  Grammar  of  English  Gram- 
mars, with  an  introduction  historical  and  critical;  the 
whole  methodically  arranged  and  amply  illustrated :  with 
forms  of  corrections  and  parsing,  improprieties  for  correc- 
tion, examples  for  examination,  &c.,&c.  800  pp.  New  York, 
1864. 

W.  Joseph  E.  Worcester.  A  Dictionary  of  the  Eng- 
lish Language.  With  supplement  containing  over  12,500 
new  words  and  entries,  and  a  vocabulary  of  synonymes  of 
words  in  general  use.    4to,  pp.  2058.    Philadeli)hia,  1881. 

Wb.  Noah  Webster.  An  American  Dictionary  of  the 
English  Language,  &c.,  &c.,  pp.  1982.    Springfield,  1882. 

X.  William  Cullen  Bryant.  Index  Expurgatorius 
of  words  to  be  excluded  from  the  New  York  Evening  Post. 

a.  Richard  Grant  White.  Words  and  their  Uses, 
past  and  present.  Third  edition.  12mo,  pp.  474.  Boston, 
1881. 

aa.    Every  Day  English.    A  sequel  to  Words  and 

their  Uses"    12mo,  pp.  .544.    Boston,  18SI. 

b.  G.  Washington  Moon.  The  Dean's  English.  A 
criticism  on  the  Dean  of  Canterbury's  essays  on  the  Queen's 
English.    Fourth  edition.    16mo,  pp.  226.    London. 

c.  William  C.  Hodgson.  Errors  in  the  Use  of  English. 
12mo,  pp.  266,    Edinburgh,  1881. 

d.  Edward  S.  Gould.  Good  English;  or  popular  errors 
in  language.  Revised  edition.  12mo.  pp.  226.  New  York, 
1880. 

e.  Hester  Lynch  Piozzi.  British  Synonomy;  or  an 
attempt  at  regulating  the  choice  of  words  in  familiar  con- 
versation.   8vo,  2  vols,  pp.  423,  416.    London,  1794. 


REFERENCES.  7 

f.  William  SwiNTON.  Rambles  among  Words;  their 
Poetry,  History,  and  Wisdom.  Revised  edition.  16mo,  pp. 
302.    New  York,  1877. 

g.  L.  P.  Meredith.  Every-day  Errors  of  Speech.  16mo, 
pp.96.    Philadelphia,  1874. 

h.  Walter  Savage  Landor.  Imaginary  Conversa- 
tions.   12mo,  5  vols.    Boston,  1882. 

i.  Henry  Alford.  A  Plea  for  The  Queen's  English. 
Stray  notes  on  speaking  and  spelling.  Eleventh  thousand. 
16nio,  pp.  303.    London,  1881. 

k.  Richard  Whately.  A  Selection  of  English  Syno- 
nymes.    12mo,  pp.  179.    Boston,  1875. 

m.  Alexander  Bain.  English  Grammar  as  bearing 
upon  Composition.    12mo,  pp.  358.    New  York. 

n.  Parry'  Gwy'nne.  A  Word  to  the  Wise,  or  Hints  on 
the  Current  Improprieties  in  Writing  and  Speaking.  24mo, 
pp.  47,  published  as  part  of  z. 

0.  Wm.  D.  Whitney.  Oriental  and  Linguistic  Statis- 
tics. The  Veda;  the  Avesta;  the  Science  of  Language. 
12mo,  pp.  420.   New  York,  1874. 

00.    The  same.    Second   Series,    12mo,   pp.   441, 

New  York,  1875. 

p.  R.  C.  Trench.  A  Select  Glossary  of  English  Words, 
used  formerly  in  senses  different  from  their  present. 
Third  edition.    16mo,  pp.  229.    London,  ISO... 

pp.    English,  Past  and  Present.    Eight i lectures. 

Eighth  edition.    16mo,  pp.  342.    London,  1873. 

ppp.    On  Words.    Supplee's  Edition.    12mo,   pp. 

400.    New  York,  1881. 

r.  William  Matthews.  Words;  their  Use  and  their 
Abuse.    Sixteenth  Thousand.  12mo,  pp.  384.  Chicago,  1880. 

s.  W.  L.  Black  LEY'.  Word  Gossip:  a  series  of  familiar 
essays  on  words  and  their  peculiarities.  16mo,  pp.  234. 
London,  1869. 

t.  M.  ScHELE  DE  Vere.  Studics  in  English;  or 
glimpses  of  the  intei-ior  life  of  our  language.  Third  Edi- 
tion.   12mo,  pp.  365.    New  York,  1872. 

tt.    AmericanLsras;  the  English  of  the  New  World 

12mo,  pp.  685.    New  York,  1872. 


8  REFERENCES. 

V.  FiTZEDAVARD  Hall.  Modcm  English.  12mo,  pp. 
394.    New  York,  1873. 

vv. Recent  Exemplifications  of  False  Pliilology. 

8vo,  pp.  124.    New  York,  1872. 

w.  George  P.  Marsh.  Lectures  on  the  English  Lan- 
guage. First  Series.  Fourth  Editiolf  8vo,  pp.  725.  New 
York,  1863. 

WW.  The  Origin  and  History  of  the  English  Lan- 
guage. 8vo,  pp.  589.  New  York,  1862. 
y  X.  Alfred  Ayres  (?>.  The  Verbalist;  a  manual  de- 
voted to  brief  discussions  of  the  right  and  the  wrong  use 
of  words,  and  to  some  other  matters  of  interest  to  those 
who  would  speak  and  write  with  propriety.  24mo,  pp.  220. 
New  York.  1882. 
'  --  y.  G.  F.  Graham.  A  Book  about  Words.  16mo,  pp. 
242.    London,  1869.       ,'  J '' 

z.  Andrew  Peabodt.  Conversation,  its  faults  and 
graces.    24mo,  pp.  147.    Boston,  1882. 

Note.— The  selection  of  the  type  shows  the  verdict  of  the 
two  dictionaries,  heavy-faced  letters  indicating  that  the 
use  of  the  word,  itself  where  no  use  Is  mentioned,  is  Inde- 
fensible, full  caps,  that  it  is  IN  DISPUTE,  and  Small 
Caps,  that,  though  harped  at  by  some  critics,  it  may  be 

regarded  as  ItQitimaic. 
I  ■ 


VEEBAL  PITFALLS. 


-««^«  ^3*^*- 


A  (for  an).  "If  it  be  urged  that  we  have  'an 
hurahlc  and  contrite  heart,'  I  auswtr,  so  have  we 
'  the  strength  of  an  norse ' ;  but  uo  oue  supposes  that 
we  were  meant  to  say  a  horse.  *  *  *  The 
rule  commonly  given  is  this :  that  when  the  accent 
on  the  word  thus  beginning  is  on  the  lirst  syllable, 
we  must  use  a  ;  when  it  on  the  accent  or  any  fol- 
lowing syllable,  we  must  use  an.  This  is  reasona- 
ble enough,  because  the  first  syllable,  by  losing  its 
accent,  also  loses  some  portion  of  the  strength  of  its 
aspiration.  We  cannot  aspirate  with  the  same 
strength  the  first  syllable  on  the  words  history  and 
historian,  and  in  consequence  we  commonly  say  a 
history;  but  an  historian.  Still,  though  this  may 
define  our  modern  practice,  it  is  rather  a  reasonable 
description  of  it,  than  a  rule  recognized  by  our  best 
writers.  They  do  not  scruple  to  use  an  before  as- 
pirated words,  even  when  the  accent  falls  on  the 
first  syllable.  *  *  *  j  have  found  iu 
the  Bible  very  few  instances  of  the  article   a  used 


10  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

before  a  word  begiauing  with  h.  We  have  an  half, 
an  hammer.  *  *  *  The  only  exceptions 
which  I  have  found  are  a  Mil,  a  holy  solemnity. 
*  *  *  They  [the  translators  of  the  Old 
Testament]  uniformly  used  sucJv  a  one,  the  expres- 
sion occurring  about  thirteen  times.  In  the  New 
Testament,  the  printers  have  altered  it  throughout 
to  such  an  one.  *  *  *  It  seems  to  me 
that  we  may  now,  in  writing,  use  either.  In  com- 
mon tails  I  should  always  naturally  say  such  a  one, 
not  such  an  one,  which  would  soiind  formal  and 
stilted."  i  43-49.  "This  form  {such  an  one']  is 
disagreeably  harsh  and  unmusical."  y  209.  b  b.  151. 
Not  approved  by  W.  or  Wb.  "  For  myself,  so  long 
as  I  continue  to  aspirate  the  ^'s  in  such  words  as 
heroic,  harangue,  and  historical,  I  shall  continue  to 
use  a  before  them."  x  7.  W.  and  Wb.  both  prefer 
an. 

Ability  (for  capacHy).  "  Capacity  is  the  power 
of  receiving  and  retaining  knowledge  with  facility, 
ability  is  the  power  of  applying  knowledge  to  prac- 
tical purposes."    x  8. 

Ahovtrwe  {for  unsuccessful).  "Apian  may  be 
abortive,  but  an  act  cannot."  a  85.  x  8. 

k.^0VT  {iov  upon).  "Beaten  about  the  head  and 
face."  1 1  577. 

Above  (as  an  adjective).  "  I  concur  in  the  ahove 
statement."  LAMBspeaksof  "  The  a&oae  boys  and  tlie 
below  boys."  r  348.  "Not  elegant,  though  it  is 
not  uncommon."  1200.    x  8.    "Sometimes  used  by 


A — ACCREDIT.  1 1 

good  writers."  W.  "  Often  used  elliptically."  Wb. 
Pip,  in  Oreat  Expectations,  referring  to  his  fatlier's 
tombstone,  finds  below  his  father's  record:  also, 
Oeorgiana,  Wife  of  the  Above;  which  Pip  quaintly 
adds,  "I  considered  as  a  complimentary  reference 
to  my  father's  exaltation  to  a  better  sphere,"   d  loO. 

Academy  (for  common  scliool).  "A  custom 
denounced  with  great  scorn  by  Boswell's  father, 
the  old  Laird  of  Auchinleck.  '  Whose  tail  do  you 
think  he  has  pinned  himself  to  now,  mon?  Domi- 
nie, mon — an  ould  dominie;  he  keapit  a  schule  aud 
call'd  it  an  academy ! '"  1 1  430. 

t  Acceptance  (for  aceejnntion).  "  None  [words] 
remain  more  vague  in  their  acceptance.''  Ruskin. 
c61. 

Accident  (for  wound).  '"Witch-hazel  cures 
accidents.'  "  a  a  409. 

Accord  (for  give,  grant).  "To  accord  with,  is 
properly  used  in  the  sense  of  to  agree,  to  suit  .-—as 
'  This  arrangement  accords  with  my  views  ' ;  but  to 
say  that  '  he  accorded  his  friends  the  use  of  his 
library  '  would  be  a  wrong  application  of  the  word. 
In  the  phrase,  according  with,  the  word  is  a  par- 
ticiple; in  acc&rding  to,  it  is  a  preposition."  y  77,  1 
253,  X  8,  r  363.  "Grant  or  accord  a  favor."  W. 
"To  grant  as  suitable  or  proper."  Wb. 

Accountability  (for  accountahleness).  1 1 230.  '  'A 
modern  word,  but  in  good  use."  W. 

Accredit  {iov  credit).     "Few,  except  very  bad 


12  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

writers,  employ  it  as  a  robust  substitute  for  credit, 
beUeve."  v  284. 

Actual  {for  present),  v  v  75.  "  Has  recently  re- 
ceived a  new  signification,  viz,  present."  Wb. 

Acuteness  (for  acuteness  of  grief).  "  Similarly 
acuteness  and  poignancy  are  employed  by  themselves, 
as  though  they  necessarily  implied  the  notion  of 
sorrow,  in  '  His  long  sickness  made  his  friends  look 
for  his  release  not  with  the  acuteness  and  poignancy 
(of  what?)  which  some  bereavements  call  forth," 
c  15. 

Atl.  (for  advertisement),     x  9. 

Aclmiiiister  (for  deal).  "  '  Blows  administered 
by  policemaii  Johnson.'"    x  11. 

Admire  (for  desire).  1 1  430. 

"  It  is  an  error  to  follow  this  verb  with  an 

mfinit\ve,  as  '  1  admire  to  see  a  man  consistent.'" 
Wb.  Doubly  wrong,  therefore,  is  the  expression, 
'  I  should  admire  to  go  with  you." 

Adopt.  "This  verb  is  transitive.  In  the  ad- 
vertisemer.t,  '  A  lady  having  two  boys  would  like  to 
adopt  one,'  the  woman  expresses  a  desire  for  these 
boys,  though  she  means  that  she  wants  to  keep  but 
one."  a  86,  x  12. 

(for   taken,   decided  upon;   as    "measures 

adopted  by  Congress").  When  a  commille  adopts  Mr. 
Brown's  measure,  it  assumes  it  as  its  own.     x  11. 

Advautage.  "Signifies  a  state  of  forwardness 
or  advance.     Therefore,    'benefit,'  'gain,'  'profit,' 


ACTUAL — AGAINST.  13 

should  be  substituted  for  the  second  '  advantage '  iu 
the  following  sentence,  since  it  is  as  impossible  for 
all  men  to  hold  a  common  advantage,  (e.  e.  to  be  all 
in  advance  one  of  the  other),  as  it  is  for  all  the 
horses  in  the  race  to  come  in  first.  '  Free  trade 
equalizes  advantages,  making  the  advantage  of  each 
the  advantage  of  a]].' "  Zincue.  c3. 

Advocate,  v  276,  285,  300.  At  vv  75  Mr.  Hall 
writes:  "  I  am  not  going  to  advocate /or  this  sense 
of  actual." 

AFFABLE  should  be  used  only  of  the  manner  of 
su}3eriors  to  inferiors,  a  87,  v  v  103.  "  Usually  ap- 
plied to  superiors. "  Wb. 

Afterwa-rds  {{or  aftericard).  d  25.  "The follow- 
ing words,  when  used  as  adverbs,  backioard,  for- 
wai'd,  doicnicard,  icpward,  imoard,  outward,  and 
Twmeioard,  are  all  given  indiscrimnately  in  Johnson's 
dictionary,  with  and  without  the  final  s.  Both 
forms  of  these  several  words  have  been,  from  an 
early  period  in  the  language,  and  they  still  are,  in 
good  use.  Toward,  or  towards,  as  an  adverb  and 
preposition,  is  given  in  the  English  dictionaries  in 
both  forms,  and  both  are  in  common  and  good  use ; 
but  the  adverb  onward  does  not^take  a  final  s."    W. 

AGAINST.  "Few  writers  would  sanction  the 
vulgar  usage,  'Have  it  ready  against  I  come.'"  c 
117.  Wb.  says:  "3.  In  provision  for;  in  prepara- 
tion for.  '  Urijah  made  it,  against  King  Ahaz  came 
from  Damascus.'"  2  Kings,  XVI:  11.  B.  says 
(440)  that  in  this  use  aaainst  is  a  conjunctive  ad- 
verb of  time. 


14  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Agg^ravate  (for  irritate,  worry,  annoy).  "There 
would  be  no  danger  in  aggravating  Violet  by  this 
expression  of  pity."  Anthony  Trollope,  a  52,  88;  c 
3.  Scheie  de  Vere  says  it  "is  not  an  Americanism, 
nor  used  improperly."  tt433;  v  v  106.  "Though 
not  uncommon,  of  questionable  propriety."  Wb. 
"  Improperly  used  in  this  sense."  W. 

Agriculturalist  (for  agriculturist),  a  215;  r 
342.    Defended,  v  v  57. 

AH!(for  ZTa/).  "'Ha!  is  the  interjection  of 
laughter;  ah!  is  an  interjection  of  sorrow.  The 
difference  between  them  is  veiy  small,  consisting 
only  in  the  transposition  of  what  is  no  substantial 
letter,  but  a  bare  aspiration.  How  quickly,  in  the 
age  of  a  minute,  in  the  very  turning  of  our  breath, 
is  our  mirth  changed  to  mourning!'" — Fdlleb.  r 
127.  "Expressive  of  surprise,  pity,  complaint, 
contempt,  dislike,  joy.  exultation,  etc.,  according 
to  the  manner  of  utterance."  Wb.  "  Sometimes 
noting  dislike  and  contempt,  or  exultation  and  joy; 
but  most  frequently  regret,  compassion,  and  com- 
plaint." W 

Ain't.  "The  only  legitimate  contraction  of  / 
am  not,  is  Pm  not. "  i  96. 

Alcoholism,    s  185.    Accepted,  W.*  Wb.* 

Ales  (for  kitids  of  ale).  So  wines,  teas,  woolens, 
silks,  cottons.  Why  not  molasseses  ?  aa  490.  But 
see  B  249. 

ALIENIST,     s  185.     Wbf  W*. 


AGGRAVATE — ALLUDE.  15 

ALIKE  (often  accompanied  by  both).  '"Those 
two  pearls  are  both  alike '  This  is  equal  to  the  story 
of  Sam-  and  Jem's  resembling  each  other  very  much, 
particularly  Sam."  a  88.  Wb.  quotes,  "The 
darkness  and  the  light  are  both  alike  to  thee."  Ps. 
cxxxix.  12. 

All  (with  universal),  r  348,  y  203;  (see  also  d  133). 

ALL  OF  THEM,     r  355,  y  204.    Defended,  i  186. 

All  OVER  (for  ove?"  aZO.  x  13.  "  All  over,  above 
or  upon,  in  every  place."  W. 

ALL  THE  SAME  (for  nevertJieless).  "  Scotticism 
bred  out  of  bad  French."    vv  110. 

All  which  (for  all  of  which),  d  127,  All,  the 
adjective,  always  irrecedes  the  article  the,  etc.     Wb. 

Allow  (for  say,  assert,  express  opinion).  "We 
may  allow  or  admit  that  which  we  have  disputed, 
but  of  which  we  have  been  convinced ;  or  we  may 
allow  certain  premises  as  the  basis  of  argument;  but 
we  assert,  not  allow,  our  own  opinions."  a  90,  x 
18,  tt  433. 

(for  consent),    vv 

Allude  (for  say,  or  mention).  "  Allude  (from 
ludo,  ludere,  to  play)  means  to  indicate  jocosely,  to 
hint  fit  playfully;  and  so  to  hint  at  in  a  slight,  pass- 
ing manner.  Allusion  is  the  by-play  of  language." 
a  90,  c  3,  y  77,  i  253.     "  Quoting  Byron's  lines  about 


16  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

'  the  fatal  gift  of  beauty,' he  then  goes  on  to  talk 
about  '  the  fatal  gift  which  has  alieady  been  alluded 
to!'"    r355,  xl3. 

Almost  (as  an  adjective).  "The  almost  univer- 
sality. "—Whitney,     r  360,  vv  104. 

Alms.  "Eaves,  alms,  and  riches  are  not  true  plu- 
rals, but  commonly  take  a  plural  verb ;  and  summons 
does  double  duty,  summonses  having  fallen  into  dis- 
repute, though  as  correct  as  liccn^es^  News,  measels, 
smallj)ox,  and  gallows  are  plurals,  but  are  nearly  al- 
ways followed  by  a  singular  verb :  concerning  means, 
odds,  and  'pains  opinion  is  divided,  and  it  is  really 
indifferent  whether  they  take  a  singular  or  a  plural 
verb,  provided  the  two  constructions  are  not  mixed. 
Say  'all  means  ?iave  been  tried,'  or  'every  means 
has  been  tried,'  but  not,  '  all  means  /ias  been  tried.' " 
Cl44,  i  28,  s  207,  tt  507,  B  247.  See  Remains.  "That 
this  mean  is  an  affectation,  just  as  this  remain  would 
be,  is  admitted;  but  that  this  means  is  ungrammati- 
cal  postulates  a  criterion  of  grammaticaluess  other 
than  the  sole  rational  criterion — general  consent. 
Perhaps  a  means  sprang  from  an  old  oblique  case,  if 
it  did  not  originate  with  the  vulgar :  compare  their 
ways,  in  a  great  tcays  off.  And  so,  it  may  be,  we 
came  by  our  singular  pains,  as  '  much  pains  is  neces- 
sary.' But  the  singular  means  has  other  parallels: 
amends,  assizes,  meios  (originally),  news  (optionally), 
steics,  odds,  ethics,  politics,  physics,  mathematics,  me- 
chanics, and  many  other  names  of  sciences  now 
singular.     Alms,  bellows,    and  summons  owe  their 


ALMOST — AMATEUR.  IT 

plural  aspect  to  mere  corruption;  and  such  is 
the  case  with  riches,  which  was  once  of  either  num- 
ber."   vv3.  66,  113. 

Alone  (for  only).  "  Alone  means  '  quite  by  one- 
self,' and  is  always  an  adjective,  differing  heveia 
from  only,  which  is  both  an  adverb  and  an  adjective. 
In  some  cases  the  words  may  be  used  indifferently, 
'B-eonly  was  saved' being  as  right  as  'He  alone 
was  saved ;'  and  in  Job  i.  15,  they  are  used  together: 
'  I  only  am  escaped  alone  to  tell  thee.'  But  as  a  rule 
there  is  a  marked  distinction  between  alone  and  07ily. 
"I  did  it  alone,'  quite  by  myself;  ' &n  only  {ad].) 
daughter;'  '  they  differ  on  one  point  only'  (adv.) 
The  whiskey-loving  public  of  Edinburgh  is  gram- 
matically correct  in  interpreting  the  inscription  on 
the  drinking-fountain,  '  Water  is  not  meant  for  man 
alone,'  as  meaning  that  water  is  not  meant  for  man 
by  itself,  i.  e.  undiluted."  c  4,  r  345,  x  13.  But  see 
V  46,  V  V  5. 

Alternately  (for  6y  !f?/?'«s),    \     rpj^ggg  ^ords 
A\tQT\\i\tio\\  (iov  succesion),  ]■  ,      ,,    ,  , 

Alternative  (for  C(?Mrs«).       j  sliould    be    used 

only  in  speaking  of  tico  objects  or  classes  of  objects, 
and  Whately  rightly  defines  alternative  as  a  choice 
between  two  objects,     c  5,  r  357,  d  55. 

Aniatevir  (for  novice).  "A  professional  actor 
who  is  new  and  unskilled  in  his  art,  is  a  novice,  and 
not  an  amateur.  An  amateur  may  be  an  artist  of 
great  experience  and  extraordinary  skill."    x  14. 


18  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

AMAZING  (for  wonderful),  t  t  434.  "We  are 
amazed  at  what  is  incomprehensible."  Wb.  "Won- 
der expresses  an  embarrassment  of  the  mind  after 
it  has  somewhat  recovered  from  the  first  percussion 
of  surprise."  W. 

f  Ambition  (as  a  verb),  c  66. 

Ameliorated  (for  improved,  of  health),    x  14. 

Amenability.  1 1  239. 

Amendable  (for  amenable),  s  183. 

Amidst  (for  amid),  d  26.  "Amid  is  used  mostly 
in  poetry."  Wb. 

Among  (for  between,  when  speaking  of  two).  1 1 
434.     Gould  says  it  should  not  be  written  amongst, 
(d  26)  but  W.  and  Wb.  give  both  forms. 

Amount  of  perfection  ( for  degree  of  excel- 
lence).   X  14. 

Analyze  "  Often  absurdly  spelled  paralyze  and 
analyze."  The  g/se  has  no  relation  to  ese,  not  being 
a  sufBx  at  all,  but  representing  the  Greek  hisis  a 
loosening,  a  a  469,  v  175,  v  v  54.  But  both  W. 
and  Wb.  spell  analyze,  paralyze. 

And.  "  The  commonest  case  in  which  it  is  vio- 
lated is  where  and  introduces  a  relative  clause,  no 
relative  having  occurred  before,  e.  g.,  '  I  have  a  book 
printed  at  Antwerp,  and  iohich  was  once  possesso'l 
by  Adam  Smith,"  c  125. 


AMAZING — ANTICIPATE.  19 

(for  to,  as  "try  and  do  this ").  x  14. 
(for  or;  as,  "a  language  like  the  Greek  antZ 


Latin").    xl4. 

Anecdote,  y  50.  .  See  also  Transpire. 

Animal  (for  hrute).  "Mr.  Bergh's  society— like 
that  iu  London,  of  which  it  is  a  copy — is  called 
The  Society  for  the  Prevention  of  Cruelty  to  Ani- 
mals. It  is  in  reality  a  society  for  the  prevention 
of  crueltj'  to  brutes,  for  the  animal  that  suffers  most 
from  cruelty — man — appears  not  to  be  umler  the 
shield  of  its  protection."  a  91.  Both  W.  and  Wb. 
give  hrute  as  a  restricted  meaning. 

Antecedents  (for  ^?'moMS  history).  "  Thus  the 
antecedents  of  General  Sherman  in  the  generalship 
of  the  army  of  the  United  States  are  General  Wash- 
ington, General  Scott,  and  General  Grant."  a  93. 
"A  convenient  term  enough.  It  expresses  concise- 
-  ly  what  would  otherwise  require  a  rather  ponder- 
ous circumlocution.  Mr.  'Punch,'  with  his  usual 
satirical  spirit,  said  that  it  would  be  more  satisfac- 
tory to  know  something  of  a  suspected  man's  rela- 
tives  than  of  his  antecedents !  "  y  50,  pp.  383.  See, 
in  severe  criticism  of  Mr.  White,  v  303. 

Anticipate  (for  expect).     "Its proper  meaning  in 
English  is  to  take  first  possession  of,  or  to  take  be- 
fore the  proper  time."  a  a  413.     "To  say,  '  I  did  not 
anticipate  a  refusal '  expresses  something  less  defi- 
nite and  strong  than  to  say'  'I  did  not  expect  it.' 


20 


VERBAL    PITFALLS. 


Still  anticipate  is  a  convenient  word  to  be  inter- 
changed with  expect  in  cases  where  the  thought  will 
allow."  Wb. 

Antiquarian  (for  antiquary),  c  61. 

ANYBODY  ELSE'S.  "It  seems  to  be  not  yet 
settled  whether  we  are  to  say  somebody's  eUe  or  some- 
body else's.  So  long  as  these  words  are  regarded  as 
two  and  written  as  two,  the  better  u.-,age  would 
seem  to  be  somebody's  else.'"  a  a  455. 

ANYHOW.  "An  exceedingly  vulgar  phrase." 
r  344,  1 1  579.  W.  gives  it  without  comment.  Wb. 
marks  it  colloquial. 

Anyways  (for  any  way),  d  25. 

Anywheres  (for  any-where).  d  25. 

APPARENT.  "With  the  exception  of  the  one 
phrase  '  heir  apparent,'  meaning  heir  evident,  man- 
ifest, undoubted,  we  do  not  any  longer  employ  'ap- 
parent '  for  that  which  appears  because  it  is,  but 
always  either  for  that  which  appears  and  is  not,  or 
for  that  which  appears,  leaving  in  doubt  whether 
it  is  or  no. "  p  8. 

\  A.\Mivtn\exxt  {iov  apartments,  suite  of  rooms). 

V  v  8,  i  248. 

Apo.stacy  (for  apostasy),  i  20. 

Apple-pie  Order.  XJuseltJed  whether  this  means 
order,  or  disorder,  r  313.  W.  and  Wb.  both  say 
it  means  perfect  o'der. 


ANTIQUARIAN — APPREHEND.  21 

Apple-tart  (for  applepie).  "Surely  the  com- 
mon distinction  of  the  two  terms  lies  in  this,  that  a 
tart  is  baked  on  a  flat  dish,  while  a  pie  is  baked  on 
a  deep  one."  s  50,  1 1  517. 

Appreciate  (for  set  just  value  on).  "Talking  of 
appi-eciatiation,  as  Mr.  Hawker  said  once,  the  scrip- 
ture reader,  Mr.  Bumpus,  at ,  came  to  me  the 

other  day  and  said,  '  Please,  sir,  I  have  been  visiting 
and  advising  Farmer  Matthews,  but  he  did  not  quite 
appreciate  me.  In  fact,  he  kicked  me  down  stairs.' " 
Gould.  Lander  calls  this  the  one  valuable  word  re- 
ceived into  the  language  since  Home  Tooke's  birth. 
V  288.  Should  not  be  modified  by  adverb  of  degree, 
as  higlily.  x  18. 

Appreciate  (for  rise  in  value).  "  The  employ- 
ment of  the  word  apreciation  to  denote  a  rise  in 
value  is  creeping  into  use,  apparently  from  Ameri- 
can sources,  but  is,  I  think,  much  to  be  deprecated." 
The  Economist,  c  5,  6,  r  353,  1 1  434,  x  18. 

Apprehend  {iov  comprehend).  "AppreJiend  de- 
notes the  laying  hold  of  a  thing  mentally,  so  as  to 
understand  it  clearly,  at  least  in  part.  Coinp)rehend 
denotes  the  embracing  or  understanding  it  in  all  its 
compass  and  extent.  We  may  apprehend  many 
truths  which  we  do  not  compreAencZ."  Wb.  x  19. 

Apprehend  (for  think),  d  96.  Both  W.  and  Wb. 
admit  this  use,  but  the  thought  apprehended  should 
be  of  some  import.     "  I  appi'ehend  that  it's  dinner- 


22  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

time "  would  be  a  parallel  to  "In  the  name  of  the 
Prophet — figs !  " 

Approtich  (for  address,  memorialize,  appeal  to, 
petition).  "In  the  language  of  religion  nothing  can 
be  more  appropriate  than  such  phrases  as  '  to  aj)- 
^roac/i  the  throne  of  grace, '  the  idea  of  reverential 
distance  and  profound  awe  being  thus  expressed. 
But  in  the  case  of  provosts,  magistrates,  ministers 
of  state,  and  even  the  Education  Department,  the 
term  is  wholly  out  of  place  and  unauthorized  by 
good  example."  c  6. 

Apt.  "This  little  word,  the  proper  meaning  of 
which  it  is  almost  impossible  to  express  by  defini- 
tion or  periphrases,  is  in  danger  losing  its  fine  sense, 
and  of  being  degraded  into  a  servant  of  general 
utility  for  the  range  of  thought  between  liable  and 
likely.  *  *  *  a  man  may  be  liable  to 
catch  the  plague  or  to  fall  in  love,  and  yet  not  be 
apt  to  do  either."  a  93,  x  19. 

Arctics  (for  overshoes),  x  19.  Admitted  by  Wb. 
as  U.  8. 

ARE  (for  is).  "We  sometimes  hear  children 
made  to  say,  'twice  one  are  two.'  For  this  there 
is  no  justification  whatever.  It  is  a  plain  violation 
of  the  first  rules  of  grammar,  tmce  one  not  being- 
plural  at  all,  but  strictly  singular.  Similarly,  •  three 
times  three  rtJ'e  nine '  is  clearly  wrong,"  i  218.  At 
least  nine  explanations  of  this  phrase  have  been 
urged : 

(1)  An  abstract  number  is  necessarily  expressed 


STATE  HOfiWAL  i>>nJ'Jt, 

APPROACH — arp:.  23 

by  a  sm^t/?ar  «(??/«  with  only  a  singular  meaning; 
such  a  number  when  multiplied  is  always  in 
itself  the  subject  of  the  assertion ;  and,  consequent- 
ly, the  verb  must  be  singular,  as  agreeing  with 
this  singular  noun. 

(2)  The  multiplying  word  or  words  and  the  num- 
ber multiplied  are  taken  in  a  lump  as  the  grojmmati- 
cal  subject,  some  claiming  that  this  subject  is  singul- 
ar, while 

(3)  Others  claim  that  this  subject  is  plural. 

(4)  The  expression  Twice  two  is  four  is  resolved 
into  "The  number  two,  twice  taken,  is  equal  to 
four." — Bullions. 

(5)  The  same  expression  is  resolved  into  "  Twice 
two  units  arefoar  units." 

(6)  The  same  expression  is  explained  as  equiva- 
ent  to  Four^ya^.^fi  are  tioice  tioo,  finding  the  subject 
not  in  the  expresyion  of  the  factors,  but  in  the  noun 
uttered  or  implied  in  the  product. 

(7)  The  subject  of  the  verb  is  the  product  taken 
substantively,  and  not  as  a  numeral  adjc-cUve,  in 
which  case  the  verb  may  be  is  or  are,  according  as 
the  writer  has  la  mind  the  idea  of  unity  or  the  idea 
of  plurality. 

(8)  When  we  say  3  times  4  trees  are  13  trees,  we 
have  reference  to  the  objects  counted;  but  iu  saying 
3  times  4  is  13,  we  mean  that  3  times  the  number  4 
is  the  number  13.  Here  we  use  4  and  18,  not  as 
numeral  adjectives,  but  as  nouns,  the  names  of  par- 
ticular numbers,  and  as  such  each  conveys  the  idea 
of  unity. — Blanchakd. 


24  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

(9)  In  multiplyiug  one  only,  it  is  evidently  best  ta 
use  a  singular  verb:  as  Twice  nought  is  nought; 
Three  times  one  is  three.  And  in  multiplying  any 
n!:mbers  above  one,  I  judge  a  plural  verb  to  be  neces- 
sary :  as  Twice  two  are  four. — Gould  Bkown.  B. 
588. 

It  should  be  added  that  Brown  makes  the  ex- 
pression tliree  times  dependent  on  a  preposition  un- 
derstood, but  says  that  if  it  could  be  written,  as 
some  think  it  should  be,  threetimes, — thrice  and 
analogous  to  sometimes,  it  would  then  be  an  adverb 
of  time  repeated.  W.  and  Wb.  both  make  time  a 
noun  equivalent  to  repetition. 

Argufy.  1 1  349,  434. 

Armory  (for  place  where  arms  &rQ  manufactured). 
1 1  435.  W.  and  Wb.  both  give  this  use  as  Ameri- 
can. 

AROUND  (for  about).  "He  was  standing 
around."  t  t  135.  Wb.  gives  this  meaning,  illus- 
trating it  from  the  Police  Gazette  ! 

ARRIVE  (for  happen,  "what  has  arrived f")  y 
77.  W.  and  Wb.  both  give  this  meaning,  the  latter 
marking  it  obsolete,  and  both  quoting  from  Waller, 
"Happy!  to  whom  this  glorious  death  am«e6i. "  It 
seems  questionable  whether  its  use  here  may  not 
be  looked  upon  as  an  intended  metaphor. 

ARTICLE  (for  anything  out  of  the  shop  where 
offered  for  sale),  a  44. 


ARE — ARTISTE.  25 

A-RTXCVLKTE  (for  Utter).  "We  uite7'  vowels;  we 
articulate  with  consonants."  a  a  40. 

Artist.  "The  word  has  been  so  pulled  and 
hauled  that  it  is  shapeless,  and  has  no  peculiar  fit- 
ness to  any  craft  or  profession  ;  its  vagueness  de- 
prives it  of  any  special  meaning.  *  *  * 
Leonardo,  Raphael,  Michael  Angelo,  Coreggio, 
Titian,  were  content  to  be  called  pai7iiers."  a  94,  x  19, 
"  '  Artisan '  is  no  longer  used  of  him  who  cultivates 
one  of  the  fine  arts,  but  [of  one  who  cultivates] 
those  of  common  life.  The  fine  arts,  losing  this 
word,  have  now  claimed  '  artist '  for  their  exclusive 
property;  which  yet  was  far  from  belonging  to  them 
always.  An  'artist'  in  its  earlier  acceptation,  was 
one  who  cultivated,  not  the  fine,  but  the  liberal,  arts. 
The  classical  scholar  was  eminently  the  'artist.'" 
p.  10. 

Artiste  (for  artist).   X. 

AS  (for  so),  "We  say,  '  one  way  of  speaking  is 
as  good  as  the  other;'  but  when  we  deny  the  propo- 
sition we  are  obliged  to  say,  '  one  way  of  speaking 
is  not  so  good  as  the  other.'  So  cannot  be  used  in 
the  affirmative  proposition,  or  as  in  the  negative. 
'  There  are  few  artists  who  draw  horses  as  well  as 
Mr.  Leech.'  /So  well  ouglit  to  have  been  used,  be- 
cause the  sentence  is  negative.  There  are  few  who, 
denies  the  existence  of  many."  i  93,  s  98,  100.  Wb. 
does  not  recognize  this  distinction,  for  he  gives,  to 
illustrate  the  uses  of  as,  "Give  us  such  things  as 
you  please,  so  long  as  yuu  please,  or  as  long  as  you 
please."    B.  says,  "To  as  corresponds  as,  with  adj. 


"Jb  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

or  adv.  to  denote  equality  of  degree;  so  is  used  be- 
fore as  with  adj.  or  adv.  to  limit  the  degree  bycom- 
parisou ;  wWi  negative  preceding,  to  deny  equality  of 
degree;  ■witli  infinitive  following,  to  denote  conse- 
quence.    B.  679. 

A.^  (iov  that).  "  As  I  can,  following  generally  a 
phrase  like  I  don't  know,  is  frequently  heard  ia  the 
rural  districts  of  New  England,  where  it  represents 
the  cautious  hesitation  by  wliich  the  Yankee  thinks 
it  prudent  to  qualify  every  promise  or  assertion. 
The  particle  as  is  substituted  for  biit.  [By  no  means. 
I  don't  know  but  I  can  has  an  assentive,  I  don't 
know  as  I  can,  a  declinative,  meaning.]  A  traveller 
passing  a  few  weeks  at  Mount  Desert,  Maine,  asked 
the  inn-keeper  if  he  could  change  a  hundred-dollar 
note.  Putting  his  hand  in  his  pocket  and  taking 
out  his  wallet,  the  latter  replied,  '  I  don't  know  [as] 
I  can,  and  I  don't  know  6m«  I  can.'"— Dodge,  tt 
579,  V  212,  X  19. 

As  (with  prepositional  force,  followed  by  objec- 
tive).    So  claimed  by  Alford.  i  160. 

As  well  (for  all  the  same),  a  184. 

AS  WELL  (for  at'sc),  "Has  of  late  years  come 
much  into  use."  Wb. 

AS  FOLLOW  (for  as  follows).  "Still  has  some 
support  in  respectable  usage."  a  a  396.  After  long 
discussion,  the  plural  form  is  pronounced  preferable 
by  Brown.  B.  674. 

Ascetic  (for  elegant),  a  a  417, 

Aside  (for  apart),  v  v  99. 


AS — AT   BEST.  27 

On  the  other  hand,  "May  I  take  you  apart  for  a 
moment?"  asks  a  gentleman  of  another.  "Cer- 
tainly, sir,  if  you  will  promise  to  put  me  togethe* 
again." 

Aspirant.    X. 

Assentations.  1 1  239,  519. 

Assist  (for  to  he  'present,  as  a  guest),  y  76.  i  371. 
W.  and  Wb.  both  admit  this  meaning  as  a  Galli- 
cism. 

Assurance  (for  fire  insurance).  "We  may 
use  both  verbs,  to  assure  and  to  insure,  of  that  kind 
of  making  safe  which  the  substantive  represents." 
i  19.  W.  and  Wb.  agree  that  this  word  is  limited  to 
life  insurance. 

Astute  is  commonly  used  in  a  bad  sense,  c  7. 
W.  quotes,  "We  call  those  most  astute,  which  are 
most  vertute  [crafty,]  " — Sands. 

AT.     "One    of   the    particles    most    abused  in 

Amei  ican  speech. "  1 1  435. 

At  (for  about).  "What  is  he  at  now?  "  1 1  435. 
W.  and  Wb.  both  give  this  meaning. 

At  (for  by).  Sales  at  auction,  r  347.  "  '  I  bought 
it  at  auction '  is  correct  English,  but  '  It  is  to  be  sold 
at  auction  '  is  American  only. "  1 1  435,  x  20. 

At  (for  in).     "  At  the  West. "  t  t  435. 

At  ALL.  "A  needless  expletive."  r  347,  x  20. 
But  see  i  275. 

At  best  (for  at  the  best),  x  20.  Indifferent,  i  184. 
W.  f.nd  Wu.  give  both  forms. 


25  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

AT  LENGTH  (for  at  last),  d  60,  x  20.  See 
Wb.  87. 

At  that  (for  moreover).  "One  man,  and  an  old 
man  at  that",  d  137.  Mr.  Gould  admits  that 
"everybody  uses"  this  phrase,  and  objects  to  it 
simply  because  its  meaning  is  only  conventional :  in 
other  -words,  because  it  is  our  idiom.  But  we  can 
hardly  spare  it  to  gratify  his  whim. 

Attornies  (for  attorneys),  i  28. 

AUTHENTIC.  "  A  distinction  drawn  by  Bishop 
Watson  between  genuine  and  authentic  has  been 
often  quoted.  '  A  genuine  book  is  that  which  was 
written  by  the  person  whose  name  it  bears  as  the 
author  of  it.  An  oMhentic  book  is  that  which  re- 
lates matters  of  fact  as  they  really  happened.'  Of 
autltentic  he  has  certainly  not  seized  the  true  force, 
neither  do  the  uses  of  it  by  good  writers  bear  him 
out.  *  *  Authentic  is  properly  '  having  an 
author,'  and  thus  coming  with  'authority,"  author- 
itative.' *  *  Thus  an  authentic  document 
is,  in  its  first  meaning,  a  document  written  by  the 
proper  hand  of  him  from  whom  it  professes  to  pro- 
ceed." p  15.  Wb.  quotes  Bishop  Watson  with  ap- 
proval. W.  quotes  him,  but  appends  this  from  Dr. 
Hill :  "I oppose  the  word  OAithentic to  supposititious 
(or  apocryphal),  the  word  genuine  to  vitiated.  I  call 
a  book  authentic  which  was  truly  the  work  of  the 
person  whose  name  it  bears.  I  call  a  book  genuine 
which  remains  in  all  material  points  the  same  as 
when  it  proceeded  from  the  author." 

AUTHORESS.     "  The  distinction  of  the  female 


AT  LENGTH — AVERSE  FROM.      29 

from  the  male  by  the  termination  ess  is  one  of  the 
oldest  and  best  established  of  English  speech.  Ifis- 
tress,  goddess,  prioress,  deaconess,  sheplierdess,  heiress, 
sempstress,  traitress,  are  examples  that  will  occur  to 
every  reader.  *  *  There  can  be  no  reason- 
able objection  made,  only  [except]  one  of  individual 
taste,  to  actress,  wutTwress,  poetess,  and  even  to  sculp- 
tress and  paintress."  a  205,  v  123,  187.  "Certain 
names  of  occupations  aud  offices  seem  to  require 
them,  and  others  to  forbid  them."  i  96.  "Like 
poetess,  condemned  by  W.  C.  Bbtant,  seems  to  be- 
come more  popular  as  the  number  of  female 
authors  increases  in  the  United  States."  tt  436. 
Ridiculed,  1 1  655,  x  21,  d  22.  "  This  word  is  now 
well  established.  Heretofore  autJvor  was  commonly 
applied  to  writers  of  both  sexes;  and  some  still  so 
use  it."  W.  "The  word  is  not  very  much  used, 
autJior  being  commonly  applied  to  a  female  writer 
as  well  as  to  a  male."  Wb.    X 

Autumn.  "It  is  remarkable  that  while  spring, 
summer,  winter,  have  all  their  Anglo-Saxon  names, 
■we  designate  the  other  quarter  of  the  year  by  its 
Latin  title,  autumn,  the  word  which  should  have 
designated  it,  Jiarvest,  having  been  appropriated  to 
the  ingathering  of  the  fruits  of  this  season,  not  to 
the  season  itself."  p  99. 

Avail  (for  avail  oneself  of).  1 1  436. 

Averse  from  (for  amrse  to).  "If  we  had  a 
neuter  verb  overt,  it  may  be  that  the  influence  of  the 
preposition  it  would  regularly  have  taken  would 
have  kept  us  from  altering  tlie  '  averse />?/?«  '  of  our 


30  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

fathers  into  'averse  fc/now  generally  prevalent."  v 
83.  d  83,  c  113,  y  206.  Tliougli  W.  says  there  is 
authority  for  both  uses,  he  uses  avej'se  to  in  his  own 
illustration.     Wb.  declares  positively  for  aveise  to. 

Avocation  (for  vocation).  "During  the  last 
hundred  years  these  words  have  become  confounded 
— a  coafusion  that  Skeat  unwillingly  accepts,  de- 
fining avocation  by  'pursuit,  employment,  business.' 
*  *  With  an  inconsistency  strange  in  so  able 
a  philologist,  Mr.  Fitzedward  Hall  condemns  the 
use  of  avocation  for  vocation  (d  214-16),  but  sa}'s  of 
avocations,  '  the  plural,  very  anomalously,  inverts  in 
most  cases  the  accepted  signification  of  the  singular' 
(a  statement  by  no  means  borne  out  by  Mr.  Hall's 
quotations).  *  *  Briefly,  the  case  is  this: 
If  avocation  and  vocation  are  to  be  held  synonymous, 
English  is  poorer  by  a  useful,  and  richer  by  a  super- 
fluous term."  a  7. 

"  The  sketch  of  the  unfortunate  woman  whose 
vocation  may  be  said  to  consist  of  avocations,  and 
whose  duty  seems  to  be  '  to  let  her  acquaintances 
make  tatters  of  her  time  and  to  make  tatters  of 
theirs  in  return,'  can  scarcely  be  called  a  caricature." 
—Spectator,  May  10,  1779,  p.  599.  a  a  403,  r  346,  v 
214,  i  250. 

Awful  (for  very,  or  for  vgly).  a  185,  p  16, 1 1  436. 


Backwards  (for  backward),    d  15.     See  Apter- 

"WAliDS. 

Bad.  "I  feel  bad,"  not  "I  feel  badly."  aa  480, 
r  354,  i  205,  d  59.     But  see  tt  438,  vv  100. 

Bad  cold  (for  severe  cold),  x  22. 
Bade  (for  bidden,  as  participle),  a  120. 
Balance  (for  rest,  remainder),  a  94,  aa  417,  486, 
r  102,  345,  x  22,  tt  3.     "A  gross  vulgarism."  Wb. 

"As  it  fell  out,  they  all  fell 
The  balance,  they  ran  awiiy." 

Bamboozle.  "It  has  long  been  a  question 
•whether  the  word  should  be  admitted."  y  177. 
"Vulgar."  W.     "Low."  Wb. 

Banister  (for  balustrade,  or  bahister).  r  335. 

Bauquet  (for  (Zmne?',  supper).  X.  "A  banquet 
is  a  public,  sumptuous  feast."  W. 

Basilisk  (for  basilica),  i  39. 
Beat  (for  defeat).  X. 

Bean.  "  A  verb  used  by  the  uneducated  in- 
stead of  'to  escort.'"  tt  440. 

Beautiful.  "Like  elegant,  a  much  misused 
term."  tt  440. 

Been  to  (for  been).  "'Where  have  you  been 
tor"  x22. 

Beg  (for  beg  leave).    "  '  I  beg  to  acknowledge  your 


32  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

favor.'"  X  23.     "A  tradesman  hegs  to   announce." 
Wb.  1»1. 

BEING  (l3  being  built),  v  321-359,  a  334,  413, 
421,  i  167,  X  86,  X.  See  article  by  Fitzedward  Hall 
in  Scribner's,  April,  1872.  W.  treats  the  subject  as 
follows  (xxxix):  "The  participle  in  mff,  though 
properly  and  generally  active,  is  sometimes  used  in 
a  passive  sense,  as,  'Forty  and  six  years  was  tlie 
temi^le  in  building.' — John,  •ii:  20.  'While  the 
work  was  a  prepa7'ing.' — I  Petek,  hi:  20.  'My 
Lives  are  reprinting.' — Johnson.  Dr.  Johnson,  in 
the  Grammar  prefixed  to  his  Dictionary,  remarks, 
with  respect  to  the  use  of  the  present  participle, 
'There  is  a  manner  of  using  the  active  participle 
which  gives  it  a  passive  signification,  as,  "The 
Grammar  is  now  printing;  "  "The  brass  is  now /org- 
ing."  This,  in  my  opinion,  is  a  vicious  expression, 
probably  corrupted  from  a  phrase  more  pure,  but 
now  somewhat  obsolete,  [Carlyle  has  in  his  trans- 
lation of  Wilhelm  Mdster,  1839,  "Meanwhile  t lie 
contracts  had  been  written  out  and  were  now 
a-signing."  v.  in.]  "The  book  is  a  printing;" 
*'  The  brass  is  aforgiiu/  ;  "  a  being  properly  at,  and 
printing  andiforg-ing  verbal  nouns,  signifying  action, 
according  to  the  analogy  of  this  language. ' 

"  Although  Johnson  thus  censured  this  use  of 
the  partciple  in  ing,  yet  he  afterwards  made  use  of 
it  himself  in  the  passage  above  cited. 

"  Within  a  few  yeaif$,  as  a  substitute  for  both  the 
above  forms,  a  neolpgijiji  has  been  introduced,  by 
■which  the  present  passive  participle  is  substituted,  ia 


BEG BEING.  33 

such  cases  as  the  ahove,  for  the  participle  iu  ifl^r/ 
and  in  the  above  examples,  instead  of  in  building, 
<i  preparing,  and  are  reprinting,  the  modern  innova- 
tors would  say,  in  being  built,  being  prepared,  are 
being  reprinted.  This  new  form  has  been  used  by 
gome  respectable  writers,  as  in  the  following  in- 
stances: 'For  those  who  are  being  educated  m  ovlx 
seminaries.' — II.  Bouthet.  'It  was  being  tiitei-ed.' — 
CoLEUTDGE.  'The  foundation  was  being  laid.' — 
Brit.  Ckitic.  The  Eclectic  Hevieto  rexna.v'ks:  'That 
a  need  of  this  phrase,  or  an  equivalent  one,  is  felt, 
is  sufficiently  proved  by  the  extent  to  which  it  is 
used  by  educated  persons,  and  respectable  writers.' 

"This  phrase,  styled  by  Abp.  Whately  '  uncouth 
English,'  has  been  censured  by  various  grammarians 
and  critics.  'It  [rerv/ie'vos]  signifies  properly, 
though  in  uncouth  English,  one  who  is  being  beaten.' 
— Abp,  WHATEiiT.  '  The  bridge  is  being  built,  and 
other  phrases  of  the  like  kind,  have  pained  the  eye.' 
— D.  Booth.  '  The  phrase,  is  being  built,  and 
others  of  similar  kind,  have  been,  for  a  few  years 
back,  insinuating  them.selves  into  our  language; 
still,  they  are  not  English.' — M.  Hakkison's  Eise, 
Progress,  and  Present  Structure  of  the  English  Lan- 
guage, '"  The  house  is  being  built."  This  mode  of 
expression  is  becoming  quite  common.  It  is  liable, 
however,  to  several  important  objections.  It  ap- 
pears formal  and  pedantic.  It  has  not,  so  far  as  I 
know,  the  support  of  any  respectable  grammarian. 
The  easy  and  natural  expression  is,  "  The  house  is 
building."'— FiiOF.  J.  W.  Gibbs." 


34  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Belittle  (for  disparage),  vv  99,  105,  110,  d  30. 
W.  lii. 

Belong  (used  absolutely).  "  '  Is  Miss  A.  coming 
to  the  Amateur  Concert  tonight? '  'No!  she  does 
not  belong;'  meaning,  does  not  belong  to  the 
society.  Belong  is  a  verb  of  so  wide  a  signification 
that  it  will  hardly  admit  of  being  thus  detached 
from  its  accidents,  and  used  absolutely  and  gener- 
ally." i  111. 

Belong  (for  live).  "  '  My  man,  do  you  belong  [to] 
Wighill  ? '  '  No,  sir;  Wighill  belongs  to  me.'  "  i  113. 

Beiiieaii.    w  105. 

Beaeiiceiit  (for  benevolent).  "Of  what  use  is 
benevolence,  but  in  as  far  as  it  is  productive  of  benefi- 
cence?"— Bentiiam.  c  <J4. 

Benefitted  (for  benefited),  i  36,  y  137. 

BESIDE  (for  besides).  "Beside  and  besides, 
whether  used  as  prepositions  or  as  adverbs,  have 
been  considered  synonymous  from  an  early 
period  of  our  literature,  and  have  been  freely  inter- 
changed by  our  best  writers.  There  is,  however,  a 
tendency  in  present  usage  to  make  the  following 
distinction  between  them:  1.  That  beside  be  used 
only  and  always  as  a  preposition,  with  the  original 
meaning  by  iVe  side  of:  as,  to  sit  beside  a  fountain, 
or  with  the  closely  allied  meaining  aside  from,  or 
out  of;  as,  this  is  &es2f?g  our  present  purpose:  'Paul, 
thou  art  beside  thyself.'  The  adverbial  sense  to  be 
wholly  transferred  to  the  cognate  word.  2.  Tha<: 
besides,  as  a  preposition,  take  the  remaining  sense,. 


BELITTLE BLESSED.  35 

in  addition  to ;  as,  besides  all  this;  besides  the  con- 
sideration here  offered.  '  There  was  a  famine  in  the 
land  besides  the  first  famine. '  And  that  it  also  take  the 
adverbial  sense  of  moreover,  beyond,  etc.,  which  had 
been  divided  between  the  words;  as.  besides,  tkere 
are  other  considerations  which  belong  to  this  case." 
Wb.  X  22.  Gould  claims  to  have  been  the  first  to 
call  attention  to  this  distinction,  d  38. 

Bestead  (for  beset  with),  vv  99. 

Between  (for  amonei).  "Between  is  only  for 
two— %  and  iwaw."— Landor.  c  28,  x  23.  "It 
should,  however,  be  remarked  that  authorities  dif- 
fer." c  114.  Carefully  avoid  such  expressions  as 
"  5eiM!ee?i  every  stitch. "  a  112.  How  about  such  ex- 
pressions as  "  Her  face  appeared  &e<w(?«?i  the  grates?" 

Bibliophile  (for  u  lover  of  books).  "Ought  to 
mean  loved  by  books.  BihliopMlist,  suggested  by  it,  is 
just  as  bad."  v  175. 

BILE  (for  bail,  a  tumor).  "This  is  generally 
spelt  boil,  but,  I  think,  less  properl3^" — Jolmson's 
Biciioiuiry.  "Now  more  commonly  spelled 
boiir  W. 

Blauie  it  on  (for  accuse),  x  23. 

Blessed  (for  cwrsrfd).  "It  is  not  uncommon  to 
hear  an  abandoned  fellow  spoken  of  as  a  precious 
scoundrel,  or  some  absurdity  referred  to  as  blessed 
nonsense.  This  perversion  is  not  confined  to  Eng- 
lish. The  French  often  use  the  v/ord  sacre  in  a 
sense  diametrically  opposed  to  holy,  a  meaning 
which  exists  in  Latin,  from  which  French  is  de- 
rived.    Virgil's    '  auris   sacra  fames '    is    properly 


56  VEKBAL    PITFALLS. 

translated,  '  accursed  lust  for  gold.'  The  Latiu  altus 
also  convej'ed  the  distinct  and  opiDosite  meanings  of 
high,  and  dee}}."  y  69. 

Blew  his  brains  out.  d  135. 

Bogus.  "A  colloquial  expression  incompatible 
■with  dignified  diction."  x  23,  X.  "A  cant  term, 
TJ.  S."  W.     "A7ner."  Wb. 

Bosh !     "  Unqualified  piece  of  slang."  s  142. 

Both  (of  more  than  two).  "First  consider  the 
following  use  of  both  by  Chaucer,  a  poet  second 
only  to  Shakspere: 

O  chaste  gocklesse  of  the  woodes  greene, 

To  whom  bothe  heven  and  eartlie  and  see  is  seene. 

—The  KnifjhVs  Tale,  I.  130. 
Now  for  such  a  use  of  both  the  'authority,'  that  is, 
the  example,  of  Chaucer,  can  be  of  no  more  weight 
than  that  of  an  anonymous  advertisement  in  the 
newspaper.  Etymology  and  usage,  including  that 
of  Chaucer  in  other  passages,  make  the  meaning  of 
both,  two  taken  together;  and  it  is  impossible  that 
the  same  word  can  mean  two  and  three.  If  fifty 
passages  could  be  produced  from  the  works  of 
Chaucer,  Spenser,  Shakspere,  and  Milton,  in  which 
both  was  applied  to  three  objects,  such  a  use  of  it  by 
others  might  be  excused,  but  it  could  not  be  justi- 
fied. The  case  is  extreme,  but  therefore  of  vfJut; 
it  brings  the  point  out  sharply;  and  by  such  eiara- 
ples  a  point  to  be  established  has  its  best  illustra- 
tion. And  th»-rc  it  is;  both  used  by  one  of  our 
greatest  poets  to  mean  three  taken  togeliic-."  a  400. 
Quoting  the  above,  Mr.  Hall  says:  "  This  comment, 
I  submit,  betviiys  an  absence  of  the  most,  ordinary 


BLESSED — BOTH.  37 

acumen.  For  its  fuudamental  error  consists  iu  cou- 
founding  the  conjunction  both  with  the  prououa 
both  ;  Avords  as  different  in  nature  as  et  and  ambo. 
In  'Paul  and  Peter  and  Philip  were  5o^^  there,' 
which  nobody  says,  both  {amhd)  is  made  to  mean 
three ;  but  not  so  iu  '  Both  {et)  Paul  and  Peter  and 
Philip  were  there.'  Nor  are  parallels  wanting  sub- 
versive of  the  principle  on  which  Mr.  White  asserts 
it  to  be  '  impossible  '  that  the  same  word  can  mean 
'two' and  'three.'  *  *  *  Over  and 
above  usage  we  have  therefore  analogy  in  support 
oi'  'boilie,  heveu  and  earthe  and  see,'  and  of  Cole 

ridge's — 

He  prayeth  well,  who  lovetli  well 
BoUi  man  and  bird  and  beast. 

Our  forefathers  thought  good  to  extend  the  use  ol 
the  conjunction  both,  while  they  left  the  use  of  the 
pronoun  both,  from  which  it  sprang,  unextended. 
But  the  conjunction  has  undergone  no  extension,  as 
concerns  its  name  and  essential  function.  Unaided, 
it  never  even  coupled ;  but  as  it  may  help  to  connect 
two  things,  so  it  may  help  to  aggi*egate  a  dozen.  It 
is  both  with  and  that  joins  two  things;  and  if  a  third 
thing  is  to  be  added,  how  can  the  leashing  be  ef- 
fected better  than  by  another  and  ?  EitJier,  whether, 
and  neither,  the  conjunctions,  contribute  in  like 
manner  to  both,  but  yet  only  contribute  to  the  link- 
ing into  a  group  any  number  of  constituents.  And 
they,  too,  come  from  pronouns  which  do  not  con- 
template more  than  duality."  v  196,  200,  B  274. 

Both  (frequently  pleonastic).     "  Tom  and  Jim 

83^ 


S8  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

were  both  alike,  especially  Tom."  "  You  and  I  hotli 
agree."— M.  Aenold.  c  316,  a  400,  aa  396,  tt  586, 
X  24. 

Bouud  (for  determined).  Bound  to  do  it.  r  353, 
tt  445,  X  24,  Wb.  155. 

Bountiful  {iox  plentiful).  "Bountiful  applies 
to  persons,  not  to  things,  and  has  no  reference  to 
quantity."  a  95,  p  24.     But  see  vv  70. 

Boviru  (for  place,  instead  of  boundary),  d  106. 
But  Wb.  says,  "Hence,  point  aimed  at,  goal," 
quf/tiug  in  illustration  the  familiar  lines  from  Hamlet. 

BOWELS.  "  We  do  not  hesitate  to  speak,  if  it 
be  necessary  to  do  so,  of  the  stomach  or  bowels; 
but  in  Elizabeth's  time  the  best  bred  people  desig- 
nated those  purts  of  the  body  by  words  the  first  of 
which  is  now  heard  only  among  boys,  and  the  sec- 
ond never  amoug  decent  people." — R.  G.  White, 
Life  and  Genius  of  Shakspere,  2Jfi.  On  which  Mr. 
Hall  remarks:  "  The  fact  is,  that  the  freedom  with 
which  Americans  talk  of  their  stomach  and  bowels 
is  somwhat  shocking  to  English  notions  of  pro- 
priety. The  two  words  which  Mr.  White  only 
hints  at  have,  also,  different  conventional  values  in 
America  and  in  England.  The  first  is  in  England 
far  from  being  '  now  heard  only  among  boys ; '  and 
es  to  the  other,  there  are  occasions  when  it  would 
be  accounted  either  squeamish  or  pedantic  for 
'  decent  people  '  to  cast  about  for  a  substitute. "  vv 
53.  A  popular  clergyman  is  quoted  as  speaking  of 
Jonah,  "  who  spent  some  time  in  the  whale's — ah! 
— society." 


BOTH BULLY.  3£ 

Brace.     See  Couple,  d  43. 

Brand  of  Caiu  (as  if  it  were  for  accusation, 
instead  of  for  protection),  d  124. 

Bravery  (for  coi^ra^'e).  "  Bravery  is  inborn,  is 
instinctive.  Courage  is  tlie  product  of  reason,  cal- 
culation. Men  who  are  simply  brave  are  careless, 
while  the  courageous  man  is  always  cautious."  x  24. 

Brazek.    See  Golden. 

Brew-house  (for  by'cwing-Jiouse).  a  232. 

Bi'lng-  (for  fetch).  "Bring  expresses  motion 
toward,  not  away.  A  boy  is  properly  told  to  take 
his  books  to  school  and  to  bring  them  home.  But 
at  school  he  may  properly  say,  '  I  did  not  biding  my 
books.'  Fetch  expresses  a  double  motion — first  from 
and  then  toward  the  speaker.  Thus  a  gardener  may 
say  to  his  helper,  '  Oo  and  firmer  me  yonder  rake, ' 
but  he  might  better  say,  '  Fetch  me  yonder  rake. ' ' 
a  96,  X  24.  Bailey  quotes:  "As  she  was  going  to 
fetch  it,  he  called  to  her,  Bring  me  a  morsel  of 
bread."— I  Kings,  xvii.  11.  tt447. 

BUG  (for  insect),  vv  104.  "Appropriately  the 
fetid  house-bug,  or  bed-bug."  W.  "I.  An  insect 
of  many  species.  II.  {Entom.)  an  insect  of  the 
genus  or  family,  C'rinex."  Wb. 

Bully.  "The  term  is  such  good  old  English 
that  there  would  be  no  objection  to  its  revival,  but 
for  its  modern  allegiance  to  slang. "  tt  326. 

Buxele-bee  (for  hmnble-bee).  s  166.     In  tt  393  the 
.ormer  is  preferred.     W.  and  Wb.  give  both  forms. 
Biiacorn  (for  Buncombe),  tt  259. 


40  VERBAL    riTFALLS. 

Burfle!'''^'  \  "'^^®*  ""^Slit  a  great  bugglery 
was  committed,  and  I  am  the  gentleman  that  was 
buggled.'"  aa  403,  tt  587.  "While  the  enterpris- 
ing burglar  isn't  burgling." — Pirates  of  Penzance 

Bursted  (for  burst),  tt  587. 

But  (for  and).     "  Old  but  respectable,"  i  93. 

But  (for  than).  He  no  sooner  determines  but  he 
accomplishes,  x  38. 

But  (for  tliat,  or  if).  I  have  no  doubt  but  he 
will  come  to-night.  I  should  not  wonder  but  that 
was  the  case,  r  342,  x  28.   ■ 

But  that  (for  that),  r  347,  s  101,  x  28,  d  79. 

But  what  (for  but  that). 

Buxom.  "Meant  originally  simply  yielding."  a 
164,  p  38,  s  49,  y  8  V  318. 

By  (for  o/).  By  "  I  know  nothing  by  myself," 
Paul  means  that  he  knows  no  harm  of  himself. 
1336. 

By  (for  upon).  By  returning  it  to  this  office  the 
finder  will  be  rewarded,  i  340. 

BYE  (for  by).  "  It  is  better,  perhaps,  to  confine 
this  way  of  spelling  to  the  only  case  where  it  seems 
needed,  the  bye  ball,  and  to  write  by  and  by,  by  the 
by."  i  104.  Yf.  and  Wb,  give  both  forms,  but 
spell  by  the  bye. 

BY  and  BY.  "Now  a  future  more  or  less  re- 
mote, but  when  our  version  of  the  Bible  was  made, 
the  nearest  possible  future.  The  inveterate  pro- 
crastination of  man  has  put  '  by  and  by '  farther 
off."    For  spelling,  see  p  1I3,  "  by  and  bye." 


Cablegram.    a  334. 

Calciiiiite  (for  expect),     x  28, 

Calculated  (  for  likely,  apt ).  "  The  only- 
danger  that  attends  the  multiplicity  of  publiciitions 
is,  that  some  of  them  may  be  calculated  [likely]  to 
injure  rather  than  benefit  society."  —  Goldsmith. 
"Whether  Mr.  Greeley's  nomination  was  likely  to 
cost  his  party  the  Free  trade  vote,  is  matter  of  opin- 
ion; whether  it  was  calculated  to  do  so,  is  not."  a 
97,  c  13,  aa  409.     See  also  tt  449,  x  28. 

Calibre.  "'She  has  several  other  little  poems 
of  a  much  higher  calibre  than  that.'  The  writer  of 
this  sentence  might  as  well  have  said,  a  broader 
altitude,  a  bulkier  range,  or  a  thinner  circumfer- 
ence."   a  97,  X  29. 

Caligrapliy  (for  simply  penmanship).  "Fine 
caligrapliy  and  correct  oriliogrupliy  are  tautological." 
c  13. 

Calves'-feet  (for  calfs-foot).    a  188,  i  27. 

Camel's  hair  (for  cashmere  shawl),     d  131. 

Campaign  (of  preparation  for  election),  a  218, 
tt  266. 

Can  (for  may),  aa  403.  The  boy  says,  "  Can  I 
go  out,"  when  he  means,  "May  I."  It  is  a  question 
not  of  possibility,  but  of  permission. 


42  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Canalize,  aa  4G3.  "I  could  furnish  respect- 
able authority."    V  194. 

Canon.  "  From  a  Greek  word  meaning  cane; 
first  a  hollow  rule  or  cane  used  as  a  measure,  then  a 
law  or  rule.  The  word  is  identical  with  cannon,  so 
called  from  its  hollow,  tube-like  form.  Hence  it 
has  been  wittily  said  that  the  world  in  the  Middle 
Ages  was  governed  first  by  canons,  and  then  by  ca/i- 
7i(9?is— first  by  Saint  Peter,  and  then  by  salt-pctre." 
r  306. 

Capacious  (for  large).  ''Its  meaning  is  iden- 
tical with  tliat  of  capax,  in  every  case  conveying  tlie 
idea  of  'holding.'  The  Irishman  defined  a  net  as 
'holes  tied  together  by  a  string  ';  his  blunder  is  al- 
most matched  in,  '  A  ca2xicious  rent  had  been  made 
in  part  of  his  costume.'— IIodde7\"    c  13. 

Caption  (for  heading),  a  98,  r  363,  tt  449,  x 
29.     "Not  sanctioned  by  good  writers."    W. 

Carnival    (for  festivity),    r  355. 

Casket  (for  coffin).  "Thus  the  newspaper 
writer  may  have  thought  that  he  was  slyly  adminis- 
tering consolation  to  the  bereaved  friends  by  inti- 
mating that  a  man  in  a  casket  is  not  quite  so  dead 
as  a  man  in  a  cofiin."    d  95,  X. 

Casuality  (for  casualty),  a  229,  r  357,  x  35, 
d  19. 

CATCH  (for  reac?i,,  overtake).  "Ma-'iy  persons 
speak  of  catching  a  car.  If  they  reach  the  car,  or 
get  to  it,  it  being  at  the  station;  or  if,  it  being  in 
motion,  they  overtake  it,  or  catch  np  with  it,  they 
may  caicJt,  some  person  who  is  in  it,  or  they  may 


CANALIZE — CHARACTER.  43 

mtcli  scarlet  fever  from  some  one  who  has  been  ia 
it.  But  they  -will  not  catch  the  car."  a  99.  Al- 
lowed by  W.,  rejected  by  Wb. 

CATER  -  CORNERED  (for  diagonal).  g  14. 
Given  by  W. 

Catholic  (for  Roman  CailwUc).     g  14. 

Cattle.  "  In  England  used  generically  for 
all  animals  that  serve  for  food  or  draught."  In 
America,  rarely  but  for  the  bovine  genus,  tt  450. 
"  The  coachman's  cheery  chirp,  seldom  varied  by 
the  whistle  of  his  whipcord,  makes  the  gay  cattle 
dance  and  shake  the  jingling  chains  of  trace  and 
splinter- bar."    s93. 

CELEBRITY  (for  celebrated  person),  r  348,  x  35. 
" Usually  in  the  plural."    Wb. 

Cemetery  (for  graveyard),     r  108,  tt  481. 

Central  (for  merely  prominent),    i  103. 

Centre  (of  line  instead  of  point).  "A  gangway 
down  the  cefiire  of  the  room."    i  103. 

Certain.  "Belongs  to  a  class  of  adjectives  which 
Americans  constantly  use  as  adverbs.  It  is  fre- 
quently strengthened  by  the  addition  oifor."  "He's 
done  it,  sure  and  certain."  "  We  shall  be  burnt  out 
for  certain."    tt  450. 

Character  (for  reputation).  Character  is  what 
&  mSiQ.  is ;  reputation  is  what  he  is  esteemed  to  be. 
"Sheridan  errs  in  like  manner  in  making  Sir  Peter 
Teazle  say,  as  heleavesLadySneerwell's  scandalous 
coterie,  '  I  leave  my  character  behind  me.'  His  rep- 
utation he  left,  but  his  character  was  always  in  his 


44  VERBAL    PITFALLS, 

own  keeping."  a  100,  x  35.  "I  thus  obtained  a 
character  for  natural  powers  of  reasoning  which  I 
could  not  refute  [!],  and  yet  which  I  felt  were  [was] 
undeserved." — Amelia  B.  Edwards,     c  133. 

Challenge.  "  A  provocation  to  combat,  or  at 
all  events  a  defiance  of  some  sort;  the  legal  souse, 
however,  that  of  lodging  an  objection,  is  much 
nearer  to  the  original  one,  which  strictly  signifies  a 
calumny.  And  thus  we  come  agaia  to  a  striking 
parallelism  between  the  legal  and  [the]  conventional 
meaning  of  the  word  challenge,  for  distrust  is  the 
exact  and  literal  meaning  of  the  word  defiance;  and 
it  is  also  worth  remarking  that  our  language  in 
adopting  two  terms  meaning  distrutst  to  express  as 
they  do  the  calling  out  of  an  adversary  to  combat, 
leave  [leaves]  us  no  others  but  these  for  such  use; 
since  tlie  proper  word  for  such  an  act,  ^provocaiion 
(calling  out),  finding  its  place  so  supplied,  has  set  up 
business  on  its  own  account  in  another  line,  and 
refuses  to  concern  itself  with  the  expression  of 
anything  besides  trial  of  temper."    s  60-G3. 

Cliay  (for  chaise),  "  the  latter  being  mistaken  for 
a  plural."    aa  396. 

Cheap  (for  low  priced).  "What  is  low-priced,  as 
everybody  knows,  is  often  dear;  and  what  is  high- 
priced  is  often  cheap."     x  35. 

Chemise  (for  smock),     a  176. 

CHEIIUBIN  (for  cherub),  a  333.  As  to  plural, 
see  X  3G. 

Cbesnut.     Preferable  to  chestnut,    z. 

CniEFEST  (for  chief),     d  27. 


CHARACTER — CIVILIZATION.  45 

, Choose  {for  desire).  "Used  by  lowbred  people 
with  the  peculiar  meaning  of  to  choose  not  to  take 
what  is  offered.  A  dish  offered  at  the  table  is  de 
cliued  with  the  words,  '  I  don't  choose  any.'  "  tt  453. 
"  This  use  of  choose  is  no  Americanism."    v  220. 

CB.VCK-F\JLL  {for  chock-full),  tt  453.  Allowed 
by  W. 

Citizen  {for  person).  "A  citizen  is  a  person 
who  has  certain  political  rights,  and  the  word  is 
properly  used  only  to  imply  or  suggest  the  posses- 
sion of  these  rights."  To  say,  "Several  citizens 
carried  the  victims  of  the  accident  into  a  shop." 
would  be  as  absurd  as  to  say,  "  several  church- 
members,"  or  "several  Free  Masons."     a  101,  x  36. 

— City  (for  — ty).  " — Tp  added  to  adjective. 
stems  has  the  force  of  — ness,  converting  them 
merely  into  abstract  nouns,  as  benignity,  certainty, 
dignity.  — City  always  implies  the  power  or  quality 
of  being  or  doing  something,  as  capacity  (power  of 
holding),  tJe;;'ac%  (quality  of  being  truthful)."  c  60. 

r^^I!^"    .  „  „„     i      "A  civil  man  is  one  observant 
Civilization.    ) 

of  slight  external  courtesies  in  the  intercourse  be- 
tween man  and  man;  a  civil  man  once  was  one  who 
fulfilled  all  the  duties  and  obligations  flowing  from 
his  position  as  a  citizen.  *  *  The  gradual  de- 
parture of  all  deeper  significance  from  '  civility  '  has 
obliged  the  creation  of  another  word — 'civilization, 
which  only  came  up  [came  up  only]  toward  the  con- 
clusion of  the  last  century.  Johnson  does  not  icnow 
it  in  his  dictionary,  except  as  a  technical  legal  term 


46  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

to  express  the  turning  of  a  criminal  process  into  a 
civil  one,  and,  according  to  Boswell,  altogether  dis- 
allowed it  in  the  sense  -which  it  has  now  acquired." 
p  39,  vv  10,  r  323. 

CiiAiM.  "A  man  may  claim  or  demand  his  own — 
a  thing,  an  interest,  or  a  promise ;  but  not  that  a 
thing,  or  a  fact,  or  a  person  is  thus  or  so."  aa49,  X. 

Clarionet  (for  ctenne^).  See  Violincello.  a  101. 

Claw  (for  clause),  "  to  avoid  the  '  bad  grammar' 
of  saying  a  clause."    aa  396. 

Clever.  "One  of  the  most  disputed  words  in 
our  speech  seems  to  have  been  undeservedly  criti- 
cised, as  its  meaning  varies  almost  infinitely  with 
the  locality  where  it  is  used.  Bailey  says  of  it: 
'  Clever  is  in  all  senses  but  a  low  word,  scarcely  ever 
used  but  in  burlesque  and  conversation,  and  applied 
to  anything  a  man  likes,  without  a  special  meaning.' 
If  Northern  people  among  us,  therefore,  choose  to 
employ  it  in  the  sense  of  good-natured  and  obliging, 
there  seems  to  be  no  ground  whatever  for  objection. 
Used  in  England  generally  for  good-looking,  or 
handy  and  dexterous,  the  American  pet-word  smart 
has  largely  superseded  it  in  our  speech,  and  only  in 
Virginia  and  some  parts  of  the  South  clever  is  still 
much  used  in  its  old  English  meaning  of  skilful  at 
work  and  talented  in  mind."  tt  455,  547,  y  180,  v 
220,  X  36,  pp.  213. 

CLIMAX  (for  acme).  "  A  use  as  wrong  as  it  Is 
popular,  though  sanctioned  even  by  Prof.  Skeat, 
with  whom  the  word  means   'highest  degree.'      As 


CIVILIZATION — COMMENCE.  47 

well  might  '  ascending  scale '  mean  the  top  note  of 
the  keyboard."    c  14.     Allowed  by  Wb. 

Climb  rtoAvn.    tt  454,  g  l5. 

Closed  out  (ef  business),     aa  488. 

"C.  O.  D."    aa489. 

Co-  (for  con-,  as  a  prefix).  Co  is  used  only  when 
the  word  to  which  it  is  joiued  begins  with  a  vowel 
or  h.  Hence  c«ntcmporary  is  preferable  to  cotempo- 
vary.     Copartner  is  an  exception,     x  37. 

Coach  (for  car),     tt  o55. 

Coincide.  Not  popularized,  as  applied  figura- 
tively, till  July  4, 1826,  when  on  thesemicentennial 
of  the  Declaration  of  Independence  there  died 
Thomas  Jefferson,  its  author,  and  John  Adams,  its 
principal  champion.  This  was  spoken  of  every- 
where as  a  coincidence;  and  the  death  of  ex-President 
Monroe,  July  4,  1831,  gave  the  word  increased  cur- 
rency,    r  303,  tt  455. 

Collate  {iov  partake  of  collation),     d  21. 

Collect  (of  a  single  bill),     aa  489. 

Collide.  "The Euglish generally  use  to  colUmn." 
tt  455,  X. 

Come  {tor  go).  "  'I  am  coming  to  pay  you  a 
visit. '  Coming  is  right.  We  might  use  going,  but  it 
would  be  in  the  temporal  sense,  not  in  that  of 
motion."  So  ot  come  to  grief .  "I  fear  it  is  often 
true  of  the  effect  of  our  public  executions,  that  going 
to  the  galloics  is  but  too  likely  to  end  in  coming  to  the 
galloiDS."    i  190,  g  15. 

CoMJiENCE  {for  begin).  "But  even  commence  is 
not  so  bad  as  take  the  initiative."    i  250,  x  22,  X. 


<ib  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

"In  the  usage  of  good  writers,  commence  is  never 
followed  by  the  infinitive,  but  by  a  participle  or 
participial  noun  instead."  G.  P.  Marsh,  ciuoted 
by  Wi). 

Commence.  "Commencement  cannot  be  prop- 
erly predicated  of  a  noun  which  docs  not  express  the 
idea  of  continuance.  It  may  be  said  that  a  woman 
commences  married  life,  or  that  she  commences 
jilting,  but  not  that  she  commences  wife,  or  com- 
mences jilt,  any  more  than  that  she  ends  hussy."  a 
185,  r  101,  y  103,  x  37. 

The  usage  is,  however,  well  establislied.  "Who 
commences  galla n t. " — Steele,  G iiardiun  No.  17.  ' 'First, 
Young  scholars  make  this  calling  tlieir  refuge;  yea, 
perchance  before  they  have  taken  any  degree  in  the 
university,  commence  sclwolnutvters." — IVios.  Fuller. 
"It  is  far  too  common,  now  a-days,  for  young  nv.  a 
to  commence  word-coiners.''^    v  103.     See  vv  38,  x  37. 

Common  Sense.  "  This  phrase  meant  once 
something  very  different  from  that  plain  wisdom, 
the  common  hei-itnge  of  man,  which  we  now  call 
by  this  name;  having  been  bequeathed  to  us  by  a 
very  complex  theory  of  the  senses,  and  of  a  senfie 
which  was  the  common  bond  of  them  all,  and  which 
passed  its  verdicts  on  the  reports  which  they  sever- 
ally made  to  it."    p  43. 

Coiunmiiity  (for  the  commvnity).     r  364. 
Compensate  (for  compensate  fo?-).     vv  12. 
Compete.     X. 

COMPLAINABLE.      E  225. 

Complete.     •' That  is  ichole  iiom  which  nothing 


COMMENCE — CONDUOTITIOUS.  49 

has  boen  taken;  that  is  entire  which  has  not  been 
divided;  that  is  complete  which  has  all  its  parts. 
Total  refers  to  the  aggregate  of  the  parts.  Thus  we 
say  a  whole  loaf  of  bread ;  an  entire  set  of  spoons ;  a 
complete  harness,  the  total  cost."  r  365.  "  The 
guilder  of  a  house  may  finish  it,  and  yet  leave  it 
very  incomplete"  x  38.  "When  we  speak  of  a 
thing  as  complete,  there  is  reference  to  some  progress 
which  results  in  &  filling  out  to  some  end  or  object." 
Wb. 
Comprehend.     See  Apprehend.     Also  ppp  312. 

CoyiVT-RO-LijETi  [ioT  controller),  i  13.  "As  a  legal 
or  technical  word,  it  is  commonly  written  comptrol- 
ler; in  other  uses,  controller."    W. 

Compulsion  (for  obligation).  "The  former 
being  a  physical,  the  latter  a  moral,  necessity." 
ppp  314. 

Conclude    (for  decide,   as   '' diitcludes  to  live.") 

vv  no. 

Condign  "Means 'well  merited.'  *  *  Our 
age  never  applies  C"nd;ign  but  to  '  jjunishment';  and 
hence,  acquiring  the  false  signification  of  'severe,' 
condign  is  often  tautologically  coupled  with  '  de- 
served.'"  c  15,  r  360,  s  10(5,  y  74,  x  38.  "This 
word  is  now  used  only  or  chieily  in  connection  with 
the  word  puniiliment,"    W. 

Condone  "  Bears  properly  the  single  meauiog  of 
'forgive,'  but  has  become  a  portmanteau  compound 
of  'compensate,'  'atone  for.'"  c  15.  "A  stately 
euphemism  for  pardon  or  overlool"    v  299. 


i)U  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

CONDUCT  (for  conduct  one's  self).  "He  conducts 
well."  r  352,  tt  456.  Not  authorized  by  good  usage 
iu  England.     W.  Wb. 

CONDUCTITIOUS  (for  hired).  "We  have 
heard  of  an  Oxford  fellow  of  a  college  who,  on 
meeting  a  friend  on  horseback,  as  the  only  way 
which  suggested  itself  of  asking  him  if  it  (the  horse) 
was  his  own  or  hired  or  borrowed,  dem.'iuded  if  it 
were  i)7-oimetary,  conductiiious,  or  eleeriwsynary ! '* 
f  259.     Obsolete.     Wb. 

Confess  to  (for  confess).  "  '  I  confess  to  a  little 
curiosity  on  this  subject.' — Moon.  The  natural  re- 
joinder by  another  critic  was,  '  Well,  did  the  Little 
Cuiiosity  absolve  you  ? '  "    d  140. 

CONFINED  (for  brought  to  bed),     a  178. 

Con  Fi  KM  ED  INVALID,     r  352,  y  204,  x  33. 

CONFORM:A^XE.      V  173. 

Congratulate  {ior  felicitate).  "  When  I  con- 
grntvJate  a  person,  I  declare  t/iat  I  am  sharer  in  his 
joy,  that  what  has  rejoiced  him  has  rejoiced  me  also. 
We  have  all,  I  dare  say,  felt,  even  without  having 
analyzed  the  distinction  between  the  words,  that 
congratulate  is  a  far  heartier  word  than /e^jcitafo,  and 
one  with  which  it  much  better  becomes  us  to  wr-]- 
come  the  good  fortune  of  a  friend;  and  the  aKaly.-is 
perfectly  justifies  the  fesling."  ppp  310.  '•  To  fe- 
licitate is  simpiy  to  wish  a  person  joy.  To  coiigral 
iilafe  has  the  additional  sigaincatiou  of  uiiitino-  in 
the  joy  of  him  wiiom  we  coDgrat'jlate.  Hence  they 
are  by  no  means  synonymous.  One  who  has  lost 
the  object  of  his  affections  by  her  marriage  to  a 


CONDUCT CONTEMPTIBLE.  51 

rival,  might  ^perhaps  felictiate  that  rival  on  his  suc- 
cess, but  could  never  be  expected  to  congratulate 
with  him  on  such  an  event."    Wb. 

Connection.  "In  tliis  connection  is  a  favor- 
ite phrase  which  Fitz  Greene  Halleck  advised 
Mr.  Gould,  the  author  of  Good  English,  to  doom  to 
what  Sir  Walter  Scott's  daughter  called  unquestion- 
able fire."    tt  457.     See  Kinsman. 

Consequence  (for  importance,  as  '  'persons  of  con- 
sequence ").     X  38,  d  4G. 

CONSIDER  (for  think,  suppose,  regard),  a  101, 
X  38.  Allowed  by  "Wb.,  "followed  by  an  adjective 
or  noun  descriptive  of  what  is  attributed." 

Considerable  (as  adverb  or  noun).     "An  un- 
warrantable abuse."    Cjnf:iderable  of  a.  haiile.  tt457. 
Coustautly  {lor frequentlg).     c  17. 
CoiKStated  (for  ascei-tained).     c  66. 

Construe  (for  w/z.^/rwc^.  1200.  "  Writers  con- 
strnct;  readers  construe."    bb  67. 

Consuininate  {iox pierform).  "I  heard  a  gen- 
tleman gravely  say  to  two  ladies,  'The  marriage 
\}&s,  consummated  Qii  Paris,  last  April.'  Now,  con- 
summation is  necessary  to  a  complete  marriage,  but 
it  is  not  generally  talked  about  openly  in  general 
society."    a  103. 

Contemplate  (for  propose),     it  457. 

Contemptible  (for  contemptiwvs).  d  168,  2S2, 
X  39.  "  To  a  gentleman  who,  at  the  close  of  a  fierce 
dispute  with  Porsou,  exclaimed,  'my  opinion  of  you 


52  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

is  most  contemptible,  sir,'  he  retorted,  'I  never  knew 
an  opinion  of  yours  that  was  not  contemptible.' "  c 
62.  "Adjectives  in  able  and  ible,  both  positive  and 
negative  ones,  are  frequently  used  by  old  writers  in 
an  active  sense."  p  46,  aa  396,  v  168,  222,  gl6. 
"  The  basest  and  meanest  of  all  human  beings  are 
generally  the  most  forward  to  despise  others.  So 
that  the  most  contemptible  are  generally  the  most 
contemptuous.  "—Fielding. 

"Contents  NOTED."    aa  492. 

Continual  (for  contimious).  "A  continuous 
action  is  one  which  is  uninterrupted,  and  goes  on 
unceasingly  us  long  as  it  lasts,  though  that  time  may 
be  longer  or  shorter.  Continual  is  that  which  is 
constantly  renewed  and  recurring,  though  it  may  be 
interrupted  as  frequently  as  it  is  renewed.  A  storm 
of  wind  or  rain  which  never  intermits  an  instant  is 
continuous;  a  succession  of  showers  is  continual.  If 
I  am  exposed  to  continual  interruptions,  I  cannot 
pursue  a  continuous  train  of  thought."     k  55. 

Continue  on  (for  continue),     x  39. 

Contrary  (for  op2)osite).  "  Opposites  complete, 
while  contraries  exclude,  one  another."    ppp  313. 

Contrast  to  (for  contrast  with).  Both  allowable. 
195. 

CoNTKOVERSiALiST  (for  controvevtist).  a  215,  d 
12.     Defended,  vv  57. . 

Convene  (for  convoke).  "The  President  convokes 
Congress  in  special  session,  and  then  Congress  con- 


CONTEMPTIBLE CONTEMPOEAKT.  53 

venes."    a  103.     "Differs  from  convoke  as  cause  to 
come  together  differs  from  call  together."  vv  73,  x  39. 
Convene  (for  convenience),     r  347. 

Convenient  (for  near  at  hand,  as  a  well  con- 
venient to  the  house).  "  A  new  meaning,  probably 
due  to  Irish  influence."    tt  457. 

Conversationalist  (for  conversationist),  a  215, 
r  357,  d  17,  x  39.     Defended,  vv  57. 

Converse  (for  reverse,  inverse,  or  opposite). 
c  17. 

Conversely  {ior  contrariwise).  "  Reverence  for 
age  is  a  fair  test  of  the  vigor  of  youth;  and  conversely 
insolence  toward  the  old  and  the  past,  is  a  sign 
rather  of  weakness  than  of  strength." — G.  Kingsley. 
c  18. 

Convict^'  [  "  '^^^^^  ^^^'^'^  ^^^^  ^^^^  usefully 
desynonymized.  One  is  convinced  of  a  sin,  but  con- 
meted  oi  a  crime;  the  former  word  moving  always 
in  the  sphere  of  moral  or  intellectual  things,  but  the 
latter  often  in  that  of  things  merely  external."  p  47. 

Cook-stove  (for  cooking  stove),     a  233. 

Corporeal  (for  corporal,  especially  of  punisli- 
ment).     r  344,  x  40. 

CORRESPOND  WITH  (for  correspond  to,  as  his 
living  corresponded  icith  his  means),  d  72.  "  Corre- 
spond tcz'^/i  a  friend,"  "Corresponds  to  what  I  pre- 
dicted."   Wb. 

Cortege  (iov  procession).     X. 

CoTEMroKAKY  (for  coateinporary).     X^ 


54  VEKBAL    PITFALLS. 

CouNiRY  DANCE  (for  contva  dance),    g  16. 

Couple  (for  two).  "  For  a  couple  is  not  only  two 
individuals  who  are,  in  a  certain  degree,  at  least, 
equal  or  like,  i.  e.,  a  pair,  but  two  that  are  bound 
together  by  some  close  tie  or  intimate  relationship, 
who,  in  brief,  are  coupled."  a  103,  aa  406,  x  40.  X. 
Mathews  says,  "  Couple  for  pair,  or  brace,"  though 
in  that  sense  it  is  correct,  r  360,  d  43.  "  I  ven- 
ture to  cite  a  couple  which  I  have  noted  in  my 
own  neighborhood."  s 36.  "  We  occasionally  meet 
with  a  couple  of  words."  s  117.  "A  pair  is 
a  couple,  and  a  brace  is  a  couple;  but  a  couple  may  or 
may  not  be  a  pair  or  a  brace."    Quoted  by  W. 

Covered  iuto  the  Treasury,     aa  486. 
COVERLID  (,for  coverlet),     tt  458. 
Covetioiis  (for  covetous),     i  63. 
Cowciinil>er  (for  cucumber),     tt  459. 

CowPER.  "How  are  we  to  call  the  Christian  poet 
who  spells  his  name  C  o-w-p-e-r  ?  He  himself  has 
decided  this  for  us.  He  makes  his  name  rhyme 
with  trooper.  We  must  therefore  call  him  Coo  per, 
not  Cow  per."  i  54.  (  Cole  ridge  in  one  place  makes 
his  own  name  rhyme  w'lih.  polar  ridge.) 

Crack-iip.      "Old  English,  though  now  vulgar 
slang."     11593. 
Credible  (iov  credulous).     c63. 

CREDITABLE  (for  credible).  "I  am  creditahly 
informed."    c  63. 

Crime  (for  vice,  sin).     "  Crime  is  a  violation  of 


COUNTRY   DANCE — CURTITUDE.  55 

the  law  of  any  particular  country.  What  is  crime 
in  one  country,  may  not  he  crime  in  another;  -what 
is  crime  in  one  country  at  one  time,  may  not  he  crime 
in  the  same  country  at  another  time.  Sin  is  the  vio- 
lation of  a  religious  law,  which  may  he  common  to 
many  countries,  and  yet  be  acknowledged  by  only 
a  part  of  the  the  inhabitants  of  any  one.  *  *  Vice 
is  a  course  of  action  or  habit  of  life  which  is  harm- 
ful to  the  actor,  er  wrongful  to  others."  a  104,  x 
40.  "The  words  crime  and  criminal  belong  to  all 
languages:  those  of  nin  and  sinner  belong  only  to 
the  Christian  tongue."    r  71. 

Criterion.  "Generally  has  criteria  as  its  plural; 
for  which  we  can  see  no  sufficient  reason."    aa  449. 

CEUSHED  OUT  (for  crushed),    r  346,  x  41. 

Crusty.  "  Nor  is  crusty,  in  the  sense  of  peevish, 
as  low  as  it  was  once  thought."    y  177. 

Cue.  "Not  in  the  ci<e  for  it"  explained  and  de 
fended,     s  75. 

Cultured,    x  41. 

Curious  (for  novel  and  noticeable),  vv  23,  x  41, 
d61. 

Curator.  "  It  is  told  of  a  witty  Scotch  counsel, 
that  when  pleading  before  the  House  of  Lords,  and 
when  corrected  by  one  of  their  lordships  for  his  false 
quantity  in  pronouncing  this  word,  he  replied  with 
a  profound  bow,  that  he  must  submit  to  the  author- 
ity of  so  learned  a  sena'-tor  and  so  eloquent  an  ora'- 
tor."    i  51. 

Curtitude.    tt  239.  4G0. 


DAMAGEABLE  (for  detrimental),  v  324.  Rare. 
Wb. 

Damn  (for  watercress),  a  230,  tt  276. 

Dander  (for  dandruff,  as  to  get  one's  dander  up). 
tt461. 

Dangerous  (for  in  danger),  r  358,  x  41.     Col- 
loquial. W.,  Wb. 

Dare.  "'He  d,are  Hot,'  'he  need  not,' are  pro- 
nounced solecisms  by  Crombie,  but  philology  justi- 
fies the  non-inflection  of  dare,  it  being  really  an  old 
past  tense,  like  can  and  sliall.  '  But,'  says  Prof. 
Skeat,  '  the  foim  he  dares  is  now  often  used,  and 
will  probably  displace  the  obsolescent  he  dare, 
though  grammatically  as  incorrect  as  lie  shalls  or  he 
cans.'  '  He  dares  (challenge)  me  to  do  it '  is  of  course 
universal;  and  some  grammarians  {e.  g.,  Mr.  Mason, 
p.  84)  would  draw  a  like  distinction  between  '  He 
7ieeds  (transitive)  nothing,'  and  '  He  need  (incomplete 
predication)  not  do  it.'  A  false  analj^sis,  however, 
to  an  obsolscent  form  is  hardly  sufficient  wari-anty 
for  need,  which  therefore  we  would  change  to  needs 
in:  '  The  harsh  and  salutary  doctrine  of  self-depen- 
dence neetZ  never  be  heard  of.'"— Miss  Mulock.  c 
103,  cf.  aa  307,  v  229. 


DAMAGKABLK DECADE.  57 

Darky  (for  negro).  X.     Low.  W.,  Wb. 

Darn  (and  similar  couuterfeits  of  profanity). 
"  In  form  tbey  are  a  disgrace  to  our  speech;  in  senti- 
ment, hardly  an  evidence  of  greater  freedom  from 
national  profanity."  tt  596. 

Dashed  to  pieces  (of  a  person),  d  135.  W. 
quotes  Ps.  ii,  9:  "Thou  shalt  dash  them  m  pieces 
like  a  potter's  vessel." 

Day  before  yesterday  (for  the  day  before  yes- 
terday). X. 

D^KD  {lov  utteHy).  "  Even  H.  W.  Longfellow, 
in  his  translation  of  Dante,  where  the  poet  describes 
his  weariness  in  climbing,  and  says  that  but  for  the 
shortness  of  one  ascent  he  had  [been]  well  nigh 
overcome,  renders  it  thus:  '  I  would  be  dead  beat.'  " 
tt  596.     Collociuial.  W. 

Dead  and  buried,  "dead  and  gone"  and  sim- 
ilar expressions  are  to  be  deprecated.  Those  who 
have  died  have  usuaMy  been  buried,  and  ^they  are 
always  gone. 

Dearest.  "  A  gentleman  once  began  a  letter  to 
his  bride  thus:  'My  dearest  Maria,'  The  lady  re- 
plied: 'My  dear  John,  I  beg  that  you  will  mend 
either  your  morals  or  j'our  grammar.  You  call  me 
your  '  •  dearest  Maria  " ;  am  I  then  to  understand  that 
you  have  other  Marias? '  "—Moon,  x  41. 

De  trop  (for  disagreeable),  d  113. 

Debut.  X. 

Decade,  "which  began  with  denoting  'any  ag- 


68  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

grcgate  of  ten,'  has  now  come  to  mean  decennium,OT 
'  space  of  ten  years,'  and  learned  writere  so  employ 
it."  V  304,  c  18. 

Decease  (for  die),  r  108. 

Deceased  {fQv  dead 2)erson).  X. 

Deceiving-  (for  trying  to  deceive).  "  You  are 
deceiving  me."  r  349,  x  42,  d  114. 

Decimated  (for  daughtered).  a  105,  c  19,  r  103,  x 
42.     But  see  ppp  195. 

Declamator.  V  173. 

Decompound  (for  decompose),  v  224. 

Decrease  (as  a  verb).  X. 

Deducated.      Approved,   s  180.     Ridiculed, 

vl81. 

Deduct  (for  deduce),  c  65.     Obsolete.  Wb. 

jyeHvLCtioii  {ioT  induction).  "Induction  is  the 
mental  process  by  which  we  ascend  to  the  delivery 
of  special  truths;  deduction  is  ilxc  process  by  which 
the  law  governing  particulars  is  derived  from  a 
knowledge  or  the  law  goverring  the  class  to  which 
particulars  belong."  r  343. 

Defendant  (for  defender),  v  C34. 

Defalcation  (for  defaulting),  a  106,  p  53.  aa  403. 

Delusion  (for  illusion).  "Illusion  is  applicable 
especially  to  the  senses  or  the  imagination;  delusion 
to  the  mind."  W. 

Demand.  "  Should  be  only  used  in  the  sense  of 
to  ask  as  a  right."  y  76,  v  234. 


DECEASE — DESIRABILITY.  69 

.Oemean  (for  loicer  or  debase),  c  20,  aa  S96,  vv  104.; 
X  43.  d  44. 

Democracy  (for  Democratic  'party).  X, 

Demoralized  (for  scared).  "'The  horse,  in 
addition  to  losing  all  the  hair  on  his  tail,  became 
cousidevahly  demo7'ali?.ed."'  s  190.  For  foim,  see 
V  295. 

Demure.  "  Used  by  our  earlier  writers  without 
the  insinuation,  which  is  now  always  latent  in  it, 
that  the  external  shows  of  modesty  and  sobriety  rest 
upon  no  corresponding  realities."  p  55,  ppp  ICJ, 

Denuded  (for  bare),  x  43. 

Deny  (for  refuse),   v  235. 

Departure.  "' To  take  one's  departure'  is  a 
corruption  of  the  accurate  form,  '  to  take  one's 
leave,'  which,  in  its  turn,  is  an  elliptical  expression 
for  '  to  take  one's  leave  to  depart.'  "  s  110. 

Bevot  {iov  sfrft'ion).  a  148,  tt  355,  x  166.  (For 
siore-Jiouse).  c  60. 

Deprecate  (for  censure),  x  43. 

Description  (for  kind  or  sort).  "His  manners 
were  in  truth  not  always  of  the  most  amiable  descrip- 
tion."— PURKELL.  c  20. 

Desirability.  "Here  are  a  few  words,  as  in- 
stances, which  liave  been  wrongfully  objected  to: 
talented  (which  after  all  is  wrongfully  accused  of 
being  a  new  word,  it  being  really  a  revived  one), 
ventilate,  enlinldenment,  reliable,  desirahiUty  ;  surely, 
no  sane  man  can  see  a  possibility  of  ousting  any  one 


60  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

of  tliese  words,  however  faultily  formed,  from  a 
language  wliicli  needs  to  express  their  meaning,  has 
no  equivalent  to  supply  their  places,  and,  in  fact, 
employs  them  universally  in  speech  and  writing, 
day  by  day."  s  163,  y  105,  i  253. 

Desperate.  "Home  Tooke— Yon  v!o\\\({  think 
me  vulgar  if  I  called  a  man  a  desperate  fool,  or  a 
house  a  desperate  big  house. 

"Dr.  Johnson— Kj,  indeed  I  should."  h  III,  206. 

Deteriorate  "  is  wholly  different  from  deiract, 
'to  take  away  from  one's  credit."  c  21. 

Develop  (for  expose).  X. 

Devouring  element  (tor  fire).  X. 

Diametrically  (for  absolutely),  "In  'The 
charge  is  diametrically  opposite  to  the  truth,'  we 
have  both  ends  of  the  diameter,  'truth'  and  'the 
charge,'  but  in  'Mottoes  which  are  diametrically 
untrue,'  one  end  is  left  unknown,  much  as  though 
one  shall  say  'Edinburgh  is  300  miles  distant,'  and 
not  add  whence."  c  21. 

DIFFER.  "  Differ /ruOT  is  used  to  express  mere 
unlikeness;  differ  with,  to  express  the  action  of  intel- 
ligent beings.  '  I  beg  leave  to  differ  from  you  '  is 
correct ;  '  I  beg  leave  to  differ  tcith  you, '  is  incorrect. " 
aa  452.  ^Iathews  would  make  differ  with  mean 
to  agree  with  auoll^er  in  differing  from  a  third,  r 
344,  X  50,  V  82.  "Differ  tcith  is  used  in  reference 
to  opinions;  as,  '  differ  wiY/t  my  friend  on  that  point.' 
In  all  other  cases,   exprj^bing  simple  unlikeness. 


DESPERATE DIFFERENT.  61 

diSerfrom  is  used;  as,  '  These  two  persons  or  things 
differ  entirely /?'tfm  each  other.'  This  distinction  is 
fully  established  in  England,  and,  to  a  great  extent, 
in  America."  Wb. 

Different.  "In  America,  we  usually  say  dif- 
ferent fi'om;'  in  England  they  seldom  or  never  do. 
Yet  it  is  certain  that  our  usage  not  only  conforms 
more  closely  to  the  genius  of  the  language,  but  is 
inherited  from  the  older  English  writers.  It  is  hard 
to  say  how  the  abomination  of  'different  to'  crept 
into  modern  English,  as  written  and  spoken  in  Eng- 
land; but  at  all  events  it  is  current  enough  now. 
Thackeray,  perhaps  the  most  consummate  master  of 
English  of  his  day,  was  once  talking  with  Lowell 
(himself  hardly,  if  at  all,  the  inferior  of  Thackeray 
in  that  respect),  with  regard  to  Henry  Esmo7id, 
which  the  novelist  had  just  finished.  He  challenged 
Mr.  Lowell  to  find  a  single  sentence  or  phrase  in 
that  book,  which,  so  far  as  usage  was  concerned,  a 
writer  of  Esmond's  day  would  not  have  employed. 
Lowell  promptly  fastened  upon  'different  to,'  and 
Thackeray  was  forced  to  own  the  slip  into  which 
modernized  English  had  betrayed  him." — N.  Y. 
Times,  Aug.  28,  1867.  But  see  v  274,  3G2,  d  77. 
"Though  first  class  writers  have  here  and  there  let 
different  to  escape  their  pens,  it  can  hardly  be  shown 
that  any  of  them  have  given  into  it  advertently.  Mr. 
Thackeray,  in  The  Neweomes,  after  having  invaria- 
bly' used  different  to,  preferred  different  from  at  p. 
112  of  Vol.  IV  (Tauchnitz  Ed.)  and  theii  afterward." 
V  81.     "Yet  lenient  as  Mr.  Hall  is  to  popular  usage. 


62  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

he  cannot  but  censure  'different  tJian^  as  'a  result 
of  mere  heedlessness,'  different  being  here  clearly 
confounded  witli  other"  c  113,  a  418,  aa  897,  r  344, 
y  205,  V  81,  i  193,  x  50. 

Diamond.  "This,  ov  diamant  as  it  used  to  be 
spelt,  is  a  popular  form  of  adamant.  The  Greek 
dSdnoci,  originally  used  of  the  hardest  steel,  was 
about  the  time  of  Theophrastus,  and,  so  far  as  we 
know,  first  in  his  writings,  transferred  to  the  dia- 
mond, as  itself  of  a  hardness  not  to  be  subdued ;  and 
the  Latin  adamas  continued  through  the  Middle 
Ages  to  bear  this  double  meaning.  But  if  'adamant' 
meant 'diamond,'  then  'diamond'  by  a  reactive 
process  frequent  in  language  would  be  employed 
for  '  adamant '  ae  well.  So  far  as  I  know,  Milton 
is  the  last  writer  who  so  uses  it."  (Paradise  Lost, 
book  VI).  p  59,  s  44,  y  210.  So  diamondiferous 
should  be  adamantiferous.  v  177. 

Die  with  (for  die  of),  x  50,  g  18. 

Difficulty,  v  189. 

Diffidence.  "  Expresses  now  a  not  unbecoming 
distrust  of  one's  owb  self,  with  only  a  slight  intima- 
tion that  perhaps  this  distrust  is  carried  too  far." 
p60. 

Dilemma.  "The  proper  word  of  relation  is  be- 
tween. When  the  dilemma  is  presented  he  is  upon 
neither  horn,  and  he  never  is  upon  both."  aa  448. 

Diocess  (for  diocese),  i  33,  y  213. 

DIRECTLY  (for  as  soon  as).  "  But  this  does  not 
make  it  the  less  really  trifiicg,  or  hinder  one  (one's) 


DIAMOND DISCOMMODE.  63 

nowadays  seeing  it  to  be  trifling,  direc-lly  we  exam- 
ine it."— M.  Arnold,  c  118.  "  Direclly  I  found 
the  house  inhabited  by  living  people,  I  began  to  be 
sorry."— Ho  WELLS,  a  186,  aa  412,  r  353,  v  275,  292, 
X  50,  d  117.  "This  use  of  the  word,  although  very 
eommon  in  England  and  gaining  ground  in  the 
United  States,  is  not  sanctioned  by  the  authority  of 
careful  wrileis,  and  must  be  regarded  as  a  gross 
solecism."  Wb, 

Direful,  c  63. 

Dirt  (for  earth,  loam,  gravel,  sand).  "Dirt  nacans 
filth,  and  primarily  filth  of  tlie  most  offensive  kind. 

*  *  *  We  sometimes  hear  '  clean  dirt ' 
spoken  of.  There  is  no  such  thing,"  a  106,  tt  463, 
X  51.     Di7-t  is  matter  out  of  place. 

Disagree.  "  In  your  report  this  morning,  *  * 
it  is  stated  that  Mr  Gladstone  used  the  expression 
'  disagreed /?w?i,'  and  Mr.  Disraeli  that  of  'disagreed 
to,'  *  *  *  and  that  the  amendment  was 
'  disagreed /rom.'    In  proposing  the  rejection,        * 

*  *  Mr.  Gladstone  adopted  the  expression 
'disagreed  with,'  which  is  in  common  use." — London 
Times,  July  13.  1870.  c  113,  y  205,  v  82.  -'Usually 
followed  by  with,  sometimes  by  to,  rarely  by  from." 
Wb. 

Disappointed.  "  One  is  disappointed  t>f  a  thing 
not  obtained,  and  i?i  a  thing  obtuiaed."  g  18. 

Disbarrassed.  a  409. 
DiscoMMOUE  (for  inco  III  mode),  x  51. 


t>4  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

DISCOUNTED  (for  discountenanced  or  dmdlawed). 
"His  opinion  should  be  wholly  discounted."— Bi^m. 
C21.     Rare.  Wb. 

Discover  (for  reveal),  v  2G7. 

Discriminate  (for  distinr/uisJi).  d  CO.  "To  dfs- 
tingmsh  is  a  general,  to  discriminate,  a  particular 
term."  W. 

Dish  of  tea.  v  235.  "He  (Addison)  also  says 
'  a  dish  of  coflfee ; '  yet  coffee  never  was  offered  in  a 
dish,  unless  it  was  done  by  tlic  fox  to  the  crane 
after  the  dinner  he  gave  him."  h  III,  179. 

Disillusiou  (as  a  verb),  c  C6. 
DISL0GI8TIC.  V  308.     Rare.  Wb. 
Disposition  (for  disposal).     "  I  leave  what  I  have 
written  entirely  at  your  disposUiou.. "—Ghote.  c  61. 

Disremeiiibor  (for  forget),  x  51.  "Obsolete 
in  England,  local  in  America."  Wb. 

Disseminatccl  (for  laioicn).  c  21. 

Dissuade.  "The  present  meaning,  to  'divert  by 
persuasion,'  is  not  yet  in  tlie  dictionaries."  v  237. 

Distinguish  (for  discriminate),  x  51. 

Divine  (for  clergy  man).  "  The  use  of  the  adjec- 
tive as  a  noun  lias  a  parallel  in  calling  a  philosopher 
a  philosophic,  which  is  done  in  a  newspaper  article 
before  me;  in  the  more  common  designation  of  a 
child  as  {a)  juvenile,  and  even  of  books  for  children 
as  juveniles ;  in  the  phrase  obituary,  meaning  an 
jbituary  article;  and  in  the  name  monthly,  which 
is  sometimes  given  to  a  literary  magazine:  all  of 


DISCOUNTED — DOUBT.  65 

•wliicli  are  equally  at  variance  with  reason  and  with 
good  taste."  a  107.     But  see  vv  73. 

Do  (to  avoid  repeating  another  verb),  r  364,  x  53. 

Dock  (for  «c7«f«/ or  2wr).  "  A  dock  is  an  open 
place  without  a  roof,  into  which  anj'thing  is  re- 
ceived, and  where  it  is  enclosed  for  safety.  A  pris- 
oner stands,  or  used  to  stand,  in  the  dock  at  his  trial. 
A  ship  is  taken  into  a  dock  for  repairs.  *  *  * 
The  shipping  around  a  city  lies  at  wharfs  and  jners, 
but  2;ot'S  into  docks.  A  man  might  fall  into  a  dock, 
but  to  say  that  he  fell  off  a  dock  is  no  better  than  to 
say  that  he  fell  off  a  hole."  a  107,  x  51. 

Dominies.  "With  a  long  o,  not  'dominies,' 
as  in  Scotland,  for  schoolmasters — is  a  title  still  used 
for  their  ministers  by  the  so  called  Dutch  Reformed 
Church,  in  portions  of  New  York  and  New  Jersey." 
tt  464. 

Domesticated  (for  domestic,  of  housekeepers, 
etc.)  s  187. 

Donate  (for  give).  "I  need  hardly  say  that  this 
word  is  utterly  abominable."  a  205,  r  163.  X.  But 
see  vv  75,  x  53, 

Done  (fordid,  as  imperfect  tense),  a  130. 

Don't  (for  doesn't),  aa  430,  r  349,  tt  599,  x  53, 
■w  354. 

Doubt  (for  doubt  whctltcr).  I  doubt  it  is  so.  r 
344.  "  '1  doubt  you  are  wrong,'  is  said  for  'I  be- 
lieve you  are  wrong.'  This  is  elliptical.  'I  come 
to  the  conclusion,  or  the  suspicion,  by  doubting  on 
points  about  it,  that  you  are  wrong.'  "  h  III,  803. 


6^  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Doxiht  hnt  (for  doubt).  "  I  have  no  doubt  but 
tJiai  it  is  so."  y  209,  i  180. 

Dove  (for  dived).  "Dove  as  if  he  were  a  beaver." 
— LoneFELLOw.  tt  464,  pp  210. 

D0WN  STAIRS  (for  below  stairs).  "  We  go  up  stairs 
to  get  sometliing  that  is  above  stairs,  and  down 
stairs  to  get  something  that  is  below  stairs."  aa  450. 

DowNVTARD.     See  Afterwards,  d  25. 

Drag'omeu  (for  dragomans),  g  19. 

Drank  (for  drunk,  as  participle),  a  121.  vv  65. 

Drawing-room.  The  usual  English  word  for 
what  we  call  the  parlor,  x  137. 

Dreadful.     Continually  misused,  tt  464. 

DiiESS  (for  goicn).  "  Dress  is  a,  general  term,  in- 
cluding the  under  garments  as  well  as  the  outer."  a 
108,  R  405,  X  54. 

Dressing  (for  stuffing,  as  of  a  fowl).  "This  is 
one  of  the  painful  affectations  of  nicety  in  language, 
and  lite  many  other  niceties  it  exhibits  the  igno- 
rance instead  of  the  knowledge  of  the  speaker." 
d  132. 

Drive  (for  ride).  "  According  to  the  present 
usage  of  cultivated  society  in  England,  ride  means 
only  to  go  on  horseback,         *         *  and  drive, 

only  to  go  in  a  vehicle  which  is  drawn  by  any  crea- 
ture that  is  driven."  a  192,  r  365.  Alford  does  not 
regard  this  distinction,  i  230,  d  94. 

Dry  (for  thirsty),  v  228. 

Due  (for  owing).     That  is  dtie  which  ought  to  be 


DOUBT   BUT — DUTCH.  67 

paid,  as  a  debt;  that  is  owing  which  is  to  be  referred 
to  as  a  source,  x  54. 

Duffle  is  a  word  not  yet  given  in  the  dictiona- 
ries a  signification  common  among  Adiroudaclc 
tourists,  of  camp  baggage. 

Dunce.  From  Duns  Scotus.  "That  the  name 
of  'the  Subtle  Doctor,'  as  he  was  called,  one  of  the 
keenest  and  most  subtlewitted  of  inen,— accord  iog 
to  Hoolcer,  'the  wittiest  of  the  scho»l  divines,'— 
should  become  a  synonym  for  stupidity  and  obsti- 
nate dulness,  was  a  fate  of  which  even  his  bitterest 
e-dmies could  never  have  dreamed."  r  298,  ppp  167, 

Durst  (for  dared).  "Dr.  Webster's  editors  in- 
i  orms  us  that  the  past  participle  of  the  verb  neuter 
Hare  is  durst.  But  among  what  barbarisms  is  '  I 
have  not  dnrst  do  it '  good  English?  Moreover,  the 
preterite  of  the  neuter  dai'e  has  been,  optionally 
with  durst,  dared,  for  two  centuries  and  longer."  v 
229.     Wb.  and  W.  give  dared. 

Dutch.  "Till  late  in  the  seventeenth  century 
J>;;fc7j  meant  generally  'German,'  and  a  Dutchman 
a  native  of  Germany,  while  what  we  should  now 
term  a  Dutchman  would  have  been  named  then  a 
Hollander."  p  68.  To  call  now  a  German  a  Dutch- 
man is  as  great  an  offence  as  to  call  an  Irishman  a 
Paddy. 


Each  (for  every;  as  Each  man's  happiness  depends 
on  himself).  "Though  common  in  Scotland  and 
America,  is  now  un-English."    v  330. 

Each  and  Every  (often  followed  by  plural 
verb).  "When  I  consider  how  each  of  these  pro- 
fessions are  [is]  crowded." — Addison,    a  75. 

"About  one  thousand  men  entered  Castle  bar, 
each  supplied  with  a  shiilelah,  and  headed  by  a  band." 
—Pall  Mall  Gazette,     s  108. 

Each  other  (for  one  another,  of  more  than  two). 
x64. 

Eat  (as  a  transitive  verb).  A  Western  steam- 
boat is  said  to  be  able  "  to  eat  four  hundred  pas- 
seugers  and  to  sleep  at  least  two  hundred."    tt  466. 

Ate  and  eateji  are  to  be  preferred  as  tlie  preterite 
and  participle,    x  55. 

Earthwards.     See  Afterwards,    d  25. 

Eates.     See  Alms. 

Ecstasy  (for  exiasy).     i  20. 

-Edge.  "Monosyllables  and  the  word  acknowl- 
edge are  spelled  with  a  d;  therefore  ledge,  fledge, 
pledge,  sedge,  sledge,  but  sacrilege,  privilege,  allege,  col- 
lege."   J  200. 


EACH — EFFLUVIA.  69 

EDITORIAL  (for  leading  article),  a  109,  tt  466, 
x55. 

Education.  A  synonymn  for  culture,  x  55.  Dis- 
tinguished from  instruction,     ppp  315. 

Educational.  "  We  are  now  used  to  educational, 
and  the  word  is  serviceable  enough;  but  I  can 
remember, when  a  good  many  years  ago  an  '  Educa- 
tional Magazine  '  was  started,  one's  first  impression 
was  that  a  work  having  to  do  with  education  should 
not  thus  bear  upon  its  front  an  offensive,  at  best  a 
very  questionable  novelty  in  the  English  language." 
pp  133.  "In  The  Literary  Churchman  for  1856, 
p.  93,  educational  is  sneered  at  as  'unscholastic' 
Two  pages  after  it  is  used  in  an  original  review 
article.  "William  Taylor  used  this  adjective  in  1810; 
and  he  had  been  anticipated  by  Burke.  It  was  in 
jjrint,  however,  long  before  Burke's  time.  See  John 
Gaule's  IlvZ-ixecvtia  (1652),  p.  30."  v  131,  tt4G6. 

Educator.  "  Used  more  than  once  by  English 
writers,  has  only  recently  obtained  that  currency 
among  us  which  it  had  never  been  able  to  secure 
before.  As  there  is  need  for  a  word  which  shall 
comprehend  every  kind  of  person  who  devotes  him- 
self to  the  education  of  the  young,  from  the  chil- 
dren's governess  to  the  renowned  professor,  the  term 
will  probably  become  more  and  more  useful."  tt  466. 

Effectuate.  "Appears  to  be  making  way  in 
English  in  spite  of  our  struggle  against  it."  y  183, 
vv  92,  a  141,  X  55. 

Effluvia  (as  a  singular),     r  3G4,  x  56. 


70  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

EGOIST  (for  egotist),  x  56.  Wb.  gives  egotism  as 
his  last  definition  of  egoism.  Properly  the  egoist  is 
selfishly  thinking  onlj' of  himself;  while  the  egotist 
is  ;>hallow,  talking  too  much  of  himself. 

Either  (for  any  one).  ' '  By  the  almost  unani- 
mous consent  of  grammarians,  either,  as  a  distribu- 
tive adjective  always  retains  the  notion  of  duality. " 
c  33,  a  363,  d  50,  r  350,  s  103,  x  56,  137,  y  303.  Either 
may,  however,  be  used  for  each,  as  it  originally'  meant 
loth,  or  each  oftico.  c  33,  a  261.     But  see  r  350. 

(as  a  conjunction).  "  It  seems  to  be  gen- 
erally conceded  that  eitJter  and  neither,  though  orig- 
inally contemplating  no  more  than  a  duality,  may 
be  freely  extended  to  any  number  of  alternatives. " 
(See  this  writer's  own  restriction  of  the  use  of 
alternative  under  that  word,  page  — !)  Though  this 
is  conceded  by  Hall  (v  197),  and  by  Bain  (e  146), 
Laudorsays:  "  iVaYA^r  applies  to  two,  not  more," 
Biog.  ly  Foster,  ii  530.  ' '  '  Passengers  are  earnestly 
requested  not  to  hold  conversation  with  either  con- 
ductor or  driver,'  implies  that  there  are  two  conduc- 
tors and  two  drivers."  aa  411.  Before  each  of  the 
last  two  noims  the  should  be  supplied. 

(for  each),  x  56.     As  to  pronunciation,  see 

ithcr,  vv  50. 

Elect  (for  choose),  r  103,  y  105. 

Electropatliy.  a  213. 

Elegant  {iorfine).  x  57. 

Eliiiiiiiate  (for  elicit).  The  word  obtained  gen- 
eral currency  from  its  use  in  algebra,  where  it  sigui- 


EGOIST — EMULATE.  71 

fles  the  process  of  causing  a  function  to  disappear 
from  an  equation.  In  other  words,  elimination  has 
but  one  corraot  signification,  viz,  "the  extrusion  of 
that  which  is  superfluous  or  irrelevant."  Its  use, 
instead  oi  elicit,  remiuils  PruC.  Hodgson  of  Garrick"s 
reply  to  an  actor  wlio  said:  "I  think  that  I  struck 
out  some  beauties  in  my  part."  "I  think  you 
struck  them  all  out,"  replied  Garrick.  c  2o. 

!Else  (often  omitted);  as,  "I  don't  think  there  is 
anything  [else]  equal  to  cheese  for  dessert." 

Embezzle.     "  '  He  was  embezzled.'  "  aa  402. 

Emblem  (for  motto,  sentiment).  The  figure  is 
the  emblem:  not  the  accompanying  motto. 

Emekgent.  "  This  word  is  never  used  in  mod- 
ern English  in  a  concrete  sense.  We  may  say  an 
emergent  occasion,  or  emergent  doubts,  but  not  an 
emergent  candidate,  or  an  emergent  character."  y 
183. 

EMPLOY^:  (for  servant),  aa  443,  s  181,  X. 
"Though  ptrfcctly  conformable  to  analogy,  and 
therefore  perfectly  legitimate,  is  not  sanctioned  by 
the  usage  of  good  writers."  Wb. 

Emulate.  "We  ought  by  all  means  to  note  the 
dillei'ence  between  e/iy^  and  emulation;  which  lat- 
ter is  a  brave  and  noble  thing,  and  quite  of  another 
nature,  as  consisting  only  in  a  generous  imitation 
of  something  excellent,  and  that  such  an  imitation 
as  scorns  to  fall  short  of  its  copy,  but  strives  if  pos- 
sible to  outdo  it.  The  emulator  is  impatient  of  a 
superior,  not  by  depressing  or  maligning  another, 
but  by  perfecting  himself." — Southey.  p  72. 


72  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

EN  ROUTE.    X. 

Enacted  (for  acted).  X. 

ENACTMENT  (for  acting),  r  103.  Allowed  by 
Wb. 

Enceinte  (for  with  child),  a  177/- 

Enclose.  )  Sec  Enquire. 
Endorse.  )  See  Indorse. 

Enclosed  (for  accompanying),  i  89. 

Enclosure.  "Usage  seeras  to  have  fixed  tlie 
meaeing  in  the  latter  of  the  two  seuses,  viz,  the 
thing  enclosed.  An  envelope  is  not  said  to  be  the 
enclosure  of  the  letter,  bat  the  letter  is  said  to  be  the 
enclosure  of  \\\Q  iin\iAo])Q."  189.  Wb.  gives,  "that 
which  encloses." 

Endeavor.     Formerly  a  reflective  verb,  i  105. 

Enhiing'er  (for  leave  hungry).  Approved,  a 
410.  But  Mr.  Hull  calls  it  "simply  a  barbarism." 
vl94. 

Engross.  "  The  scrivening  use  of  the  word  en- 
gross is  now  almost  entirely  limited  to  writing  on 
parchment,  as  distinguished  from  writing  on  paper; 
the  distinction  being,  however,  wholly  an  arbitrary 
one."  s  88. 

Enjoy.  "  Surely  a  person  who  says,  '  I  enjoyed 
myself  &X  the  concert,'  does  not  intend  to  imply  that 
he  found  enjoyment  in  himself  and  not  in  the  music. 
Yet  enjoy  means  'to  joy  in,'  not  ' to  amuse, '' to 
divert,'  or  'to  please.'"  c  93. 


EN  ROUTE EPIDEMIC.  73 

(for  suffer).     "Enjoying  bad   health."  y 

205,  X  58.  V  203. 

Enlightenment.  See  Deniability.  "Those 
■who  object  to  the  word  will  ordinarily  be  found  to 
object  to  all  it  stuuds  for."  v  305,  w  158. 

Enquire.  "That  Johnson  gives  this  class  of 
words  with  [?J  the  prefix  in  must  be  attributed  to  a 
tendency  not  UHCommon  but  not  healthy  to  follow 
words  of  Norman  or  French  origin  back  to  their 
Latin  roots.  *  *  The  best  lexicographers  and  phil- 
ologists now  discourage  this  tendency,  *  *  But  it 
must  be  confessed  that  the  class  of  words  in  ques- 
tion is  notably  defiant  of  analogy;  and  very  much  in 
need  of  regulation.  For  instance,  enquire,  enquiry, 
inquest,  inquisition.  No  one  would  think  of  writing 
enquest  and  enquisition.  Tke  discrepancy  is  of  long 
standing,  and  must  be  borne,  except  by  those  who 
choose  to  avoid  it  by  writing  inquire  for  the  sake  of 
uniformity;  condemnation  of  which  may  be  left  to 
purists  "  a  207,  447,  i  19.  So  even  of  entire,  y  213. 
But  see  v  159. 

Entail  (for  leads  to),     i  252. 
Enthuse,     a  207,  r  363,  tt  467,  x  58. 
Entire.    See  Complete. 

Epidemic  (for  endemic).  "The  former  means 
strictly  a  disease  which  breaks  out  and  diffuses 
itself  widely  over  a  community,  and  which  sooner 
or  later  abates  and  disappears,  possibly  never  to 
eturn.  The  latter  means  a  disease  which  prevails 
^n  and  pertains  to  a  particular  neighborhood. "  aa  4G6,. 


ii  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Epitket  (as  necessarily  decrying),  x  59,  d  58. 
EPSILON  (for  cpsilon),     i  62. 
Equally  as  well  (for  equally  welt),  r  S53,  s  100, 
x59. 

EQUANIMITY  OF  MIND,  r  348,  y  204,  x  59. 
So  of  a  capricious  mind,     x  122. 

Esquire.  "I  have  yet  to  discover  what  a  man 
means  when  he  addresses  a  letter  to  John  Dash, 
Esq.  (who  is  in  no  manner  distinguished  or  distin- 
guishable from  other  Dashes)  except  that  Mr.  Dash 
shall  think  he  means  to  be  polite."  a  109,  tt  467, 
X  60.  X. 

Essay  (for  try,  followed  by  an  infinitive),  y  103. 

Etcetera.  "&c.,  &c.  is  very  frequently  read 
'and  so  forth,  and  so  forth ' ;  and  what  is  worse, 
many  people  who  read  it  properly,  ei  cetera,  regard 
it  and  use  it  as  a  more  elegant  ecjuivalent  of  'and  so 
forth  ';  but  it  is  no  such  thing.  Et  cetera  is  merely 
Latin  for  arid  the  rest,  and  is  properly  used  in  sched- 
ules or  statements  after  an  account  given  of  partic- 
ular things,  to  include  other  things  loo  unimportant 
and  too  numerous  for  particular  mention.  But  the 
phrase,  and  so  forth  has  quite  another  meaning,  i.e., 
and  as  before  so  after,  in  the  same  strain.  It 
implies  the  continuation  of  a  story  in  accordance 
willi  the  beginning."     aSOS. 

Evacuate  (for  Icayve).  "Evacuate  does  not  mean 
to  go  away,  but  to  make  empty."  a  109,  c  28. 

Eventuate,  a  149,  aa  459,  i  250,  x  00.  Defended, 
vv  77.     Rare  in  England.  Wb.,  W, 


EPITHET— EXCEPT.  75 

Every  once  iu  a  while.  "Absurd  and 
meaningless."  aa  410. 

Every  (for  entire  or  all).  ' '  Rendered  them  every 
assistance "  is  absurdly  wrong.  ''Every  is  separa- 
tive, and  can  be  applied  only  to  a  whole  composrd 
of  many  individuals."  a  110,  r  360,  x  60. 

"  '  Every  person  rose  and  took  their  leave.'  "  aa 
421. 

Every wheres  (for  everywhere). 

Evidence  (for  testimony).  "  Eviclence  relates  to 
the  convictive  view  of  any  one's  mind;  testimony  to 
the  knowledge  (?)  of  another  concerning  some  fact. 
The  evidence  in  the  case  is  often  the  reverse  of  the 
testimony."  r  347,  x  62.  "Testimony  is  the  evi- 
dence of  one;  evidence  may  comprehend  the  testi- 
mony of  many,"  W. 

Evince  (for  shoio),  "One  of  the  most  odious 
words  iu  all  this  catalogue  of  valgarities."  i  24fc. 

Evolute  (for  evolutionize).  aa  455.  W.  and  Wb. 
do  not  give  either  word. 

EXAMPLE  {iorprohhm).  "A  problem  is  often 
an  example  of  a  rule,  but  not  always:  and  in  any 
case  its  exemplary  is  not  its  essential  character."  a 
112. 

Except  (for  bemies).  "  '  Few  ladies,  excejjt  Her 
Majesty,  could  have  made  themselves  heard.'  From 
what  list  is  Her  Majesty  excepted,  or  taken  out? 
Clearly  not  from  among  the  few  ladies  spoken  of," 
i221. 


76  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Except  "is  questionably  used  as  a  conjunction. 
*  *  Unless  would  be  held  preferable,  as  it 

certainly  would   to  iciihout."  c  117,  r  360,  y  206, 
x63. 

Exceptionable  (for  exceptional).  "'This  gen- 
tleman has  spent  several  months  of  active  travel  and 
diligent  inquiry  in  the  country,  penetrating  to  the 
Sierra  Nevada,  and  spending  some  weeks  in  close 
observation  in  Utah,  where,  through  a  concurrence 
favorable  circumstauces,  he  enjoyed  exceptionable 
opportunities  for  acquainting  himself  with  the  or- 
ganization, probity,  and  inner  life  of  the  Mormons.'  " 
d97. 

Excessively  (for  exceedingly),  v  350,  x  62. 

Executed  (for  Itung).  "'To  execute  (from 
sequor)  is  to  follow  to  the  end,  and  so  to  carry  out,  to 
perform;  and  how  is  it  possible  that  a  human  being 
can  be  executed?  *  *  A  law  may  be  exe- 
cuted ;  a  sentence  may  be  executed ;  and  the  execu- 
tion of  the  law  or  of  a  sentence  sometimes,  though 
not  once  in  a  thousand  times,  results  in  the  death 
of  the  person  upon  whom  it  is  executed.' "  a  111, 
aa  424,  x  63.  But  see  vv  78.  "  Execntioner,  which 
we  use  only  in  one  sense,  would  pass  clear  out  of 
our  language,  under  Mr.  White's  purification  of  it." 

Two  well-dressed  women  were  examining  a  statue 
of  Andromeda,  labelled  "  Executed  in  Terra-cotta." 
Said  one,  "Where  is  Terra-cotta?"  The  other  re- 
plied, "I  am  sure  I  don't  know,  but  I  pity  the  poor 
girl,  wherever  it  was." 


EXCEPT — ^EXPLODE.  77 

Exemplary  (for  excellent).  "This  misuse  of  exem- 
plary confines  it  to  examples  which  should  be  fol- 
lowed. But  some  examples  are  not  to  be  followed. 
A  man  is  hanged  for  an  example."     a  113,  p  76. 

Expect  (for  suppose).     "Expect  refers  only  to 
that  which  is  to  come,   and    which,    therefore,    is 
looked  for  {ex,  out,  and  spectare,  to  look).     We  can 
not  expect  backward."    a  113  aa  433,   tt  COl,  x  63, 
g20. 

Experienced.  "From  the  noun  experience  is 
formed  the  participial  adjective  experienced  (which 
is  not  the  perfect  participle  of  a  verb  experience),  as 
moneyed,  from  money,  landed  from  laud,  talented 
from  talent,  *  *  Battlemented  is  not  a  part  of  a  verb, 
Ibatilevteid,  tltou  battlementest,  etc;  or  talented  from 
a  verb — 1  talent,  thou  talentest,  etc."  a  113,  i  115,353. 
But  see  vv  31,  x  03. 

EXPERIMENTALIZE,     a  314,  d  17. 

Exploit  (as  a  verb).  They  did  not  exploit  that 
passion  of  patriotism." — Lowell,  My  Study  Win- 
dows, p.  89.  c  66.     Obsolete.     W.  Wb. 

Explode.  "All  our  present  uses  of  exj)lode, 
whether  literal  or  figurative,  have  reference  to  burst- 
ing, and  to  bursting  with  noise;  and  it  is  for  the 
most  part  forgotten,  I  should  imagine,  that  these  are 
all  secondary  and  derived;  that  to  ex^Jlode,  originally 
an  active  verb,  means  to  drive  off  the  stage  with 
loud  clapping  of  the  hands:  and  that  when  one  of 
our  early  writers  speaks  of  an  exploded  heresy  or  an 
exploded  opinion,  his  image  is  not  drawn  from  some- 


78  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

thing  which,  having  burst,  has  perished  so;  but  he 
would  imply  that  it  has  been  contemptuously  driven 
off  from  the  world's  stage."    p.  77. 

Exponential  {erponentaT).  a  217.     But  see  vv  68. 
Exponental  not  given  by  W.  or  Wb. 

Extend  (of  invitations,  etc.).     a  115.  r  359,  x  63. 

EXTRA  (of  newspapers),  aa  373.    Colloquial.  W. 


Fall  (for  autumn).  "By  no  means  an  Ameri- 
canism." tt  4G8,  y  182,  pp  201. 

Faithful  (with ^romse).  "/  faithful  promise! 
Thai  puzzles  me.  I  have  heard  of  a  faithful  per- 
formance. But  a  faithful  promise;  tLe  fidelity  of 
promising!" — Mm  Austen,   c  28. 

Family,  "  A  man  of  famili/  iieans  in  England  a 
man  well  connected;  in  America  a  man  having  wife 
and  children."  tt  468. 

Fancy,  Distinguished  from  imagination,  ppp 
294. 

Fare  thee  well.     "Plainly  wrong."    r  364. 

Fast  (for  immoral).  "  A  fast  man  is  a  man  that 
has  more  money  to  spend  than  he  has  time  to  spend 
it  in."  aa  376.  "  'By  a  fast  man,  1  suppose  you 
mean  a  loose  one,'  said  Sir  Robert  Inglis,  to  one  who 
was  describing  a  rake."  r  297. 

FEEL  OF  {tovfeel).  w  107. 

Felicitously.  "  Oh  for  an  Act  of  Parliament 
for  the  transportation  to  America  or  Van  l)i -'men's 
Land  of  the  vile  infelicissimous  felicitoucly." — Cole- 
ridge.    But  see  v  76. 

Fellowship  (as  a  verb),     a  209,  tt  238. 
Female  (for  woman).  When  a  woman  calls  her- 


bO  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

self  a  female,  she  merely  shares  her  sex  witli  all 
her  fellow  females  throughout  the  brute  creation." 
a  180,  c  29,  aa  3'JO,  tt  469,  i  21G. 

"  '  "We  read  o  ly  the  other  day  a  report  of  a  lec- 
ture on  the  poet  Crabbe,  in  which  she  who  was 
afterward  Mrs.  Crabbe  was  spoken  of  as  "  a  female 
to  whom  he  had  formed  an  attachment."  To  us, 
indeed,  it  seems  that  a  man's  wife  should  be  spoken 
of  in  some  way  which  is  not  equally  applicable  to  a 
ewe  lamb  or  a  favorite  mare.  But  it  was  a  "female" 
who  delivered  the  lecture,  and  we  suppose  the 
females  know  best  about  their  own  affairs.'  "  r  101. 

"In  the  many  surgings  of  the  mighty  crowd,  I 
had  actually  labored  to  assist  and  protect  two  ( I 
was  going  to  say  ladies,  but  ladies  are  grateful;  I 
can't  say  young  persons,  for  they  wore  n't  young; 
nor  can  I  say  women,  for  that  is  considered  a  slight; 
or  females,  for  such  persons  are  not  supposed  to 
exist), — well,  two  individuals  of  a  different  sex 
from  my  own.  s79." 

Feminine.  "The  distinction  between  feminine  and 
effeminate,  that  the  first  is  'womanly,'  the  second 
'womanish,'  the  first  what  becomes  a  woman  and 
.may  under  certain  limitations  and  without  reproach 
be  affirmed  of  a  man,  while  the  second  is  that  which 
under  all  circumstances  dishonors  a  man,  as  man- 
nish  would  dishonor  a  woman,  is  of  comparatively 
modern  growth."  p  80. 

Few.  "The  accuracy  of  a  few  is  sometimes  ques- 
tioned, on  the  assumption  that  it  cannot  be  correct 


FEMALE FIKST-KATE,  81 

because  a  many  is  incorrect;  but  both  are  right.  The 
indefinite  article  has  a  singular  meaning,  but  it  is 
also  applicable  to  a  collective  number;  as  a  hundred; 
a  great  many  is  also  correct,  like  so  many,  very  many 
being  a  manner  of  comparative  designation, 
"full  mamj  a  gem  of  purest  ray  serene" 
is  but  a  later  and  substituted  rse  for  a  many  gems. 
Few  without  the  article  has  almost  a  negative  sense, 
meaning  almost  none",  d  99, 

Fetch;  see  Bring. 

Fiddle  de-dee  1  "Semi-sanctioned."  s  143. 

Figure  (for  amount,  sum.)  d  112. 

Final  {with  completion)  r  348,  y  203,  x  65. 

Fire  (for  throio  or  shoot.)  "When  hand  tire  arms 
came  into  use,  and  very  slowly  superseded  the  bow, 
the  musketeer  carried  a  lighted  match,  and  the 
word  of  command  was,  'Give  fire!'  that  is,  put  tire 
to  the  powder.  Tliis,  was  soon  naturally  abreviated 
to  'fire.'  Hence^j-e  came  to  be  used,  pardonably  as 
to  arms,  for  shoot."  aa  408,  tt  470. 

First  (for  any,  as  "have  yet  to  see  the  first  in- 
stance"). "The  phrase  stands  about  midway  between 
the  painfully  am&Uious  and  the  painfully  elaborate 
styles,  with  a  suspicion  of  the  painfully  emphatic 
somewhere  about."  x  118. 

First-rate.  "I  should  have  used  the  word 
•without  scruple,  even  were  I  sure  that  it  had  never 
been  used  before."  a  238,  tt  G02.  But  see  vv  9!), 
x65. 


82  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

FIRST  TWO.  '"In  the  first  two  of  these 
examples,'  etc.  Had  the  examples  in  the  text  been 
arranged  in  twos,  '  the  first  two  '  would  have  been 
correct,  but  as  they  are  not  so  arranged  it  is  faulty. 
It  should  have  been  'the  two  first,' i.  e.,  the  two 
standing  first  in  the  list  or  number.  *  *  Let  us  sup- 
pose a  company  of  soldiers  drawn  up  in  a  row  at 
(.cpial  distances  from  each  other.  In  speaking  of 
those  at  the  beginning  of  the  row  we  should  say 
'the  two  first,'  '  the  three  first,'  &c;  but  imagine 
them  drawn  up  in  twos,  we  ought  to  say  'the  first 
two,'  'the  second  two,'  &c,  otherwise  we  would 
[should]  not  describe  them  correctly.  Should  any 
reader  call  in  question  the  existence  and  necessity 
of  the  idiomatic  distinction  now  pointed  out,  we 
should  refer  him  to  Gibbon's  Decline  and  Fall  of  the 
Roman  Empire,  where  he  will  find  the  difctinction-- 
maintained  throughout  that  vast  work.  One  occurs 
at  the  very  beginning:  'The  seven  first  centuries 
were  filled  with  a  succession  of  triumphs."  a  182. 
u  171.  "  Obscurity  and  affectation  are  the  two 
greatest  faults  of  style." — Macaulay,  Essay  on 
MacJdavelU.  "It  is  with  the  two  first  classes."  v 
153.  But  see  i  145,  d  137. 

FIRSTLY  (for  first),  r  357,  d  24,  x  65,  "It  is 
sometimes  used  by  respectable  writers  instead  of 
first."  W.     "Improperly  used  for  first."  Wb. 

Fix.  "May  be  safely  called  the  American  word  of 
words,  since  there  is  probably  no  action  whatever, 
performed  by  mind  or  body,  which  is  not  repre- 


FIRST   TWO— FLOCK.  S3 

sented  at  some  time  or  other  by  Ihis  universal  term 
"It  has  well  been  called  the  strongest  evidence  of 
that  natural  indolence  which  avoids  the  trouble  of 
careful  thought  at  all'  hazards,  and  that  restless 
hurry  which  ever  makes  the  word  welcome  that 
comes  up  first  and  saves  time.  Whatever  is  to  be 
made,  whatever  needs  repair,  whatever  requires  ar- 
rangement— all  \a  fixed.  The  VdvmQV  fixes  his  gates, 
the  mechanic  his  work-bench,  tke  seamstress  her 
sewing  machine,  the  fine  lady  her  hair,  and  the 
school-boy  his  rules.  The  minister  forgets  to  fir  his 
his  sermon  in  time,  the  doctor  his  medicines,  and 
the  lawyer  to^j;  his  brief.  At  public  meeting  it  is 
fixed  who  are  to  be  the  candidates  for  office,  rules 
diVe  fixed  io  govern  an  institution,  and  when  the  ar- 
rangements are  made,  the  people  contentedly  say. 
Now  everything  is  fixed  nicely.  It  is  not  to  be  won- 
dered at  that  Americans  should  be  so  continuously 
in  a  fix.  FLvings  very  naturally  abound,  from  Rail- 
road Fixings,  to  the  chicken  Fixings,  the  universal 
dish  of  the  South  and  West."  tt  472,  y  180. 

Flock.  Distinctions  in  the  use  of  collective  nouns 
have  been  thus  pointed  out: 

A  flock  of  girls  is  called  a  bevy;  a  bevy  of  wolves 
a  pack;  a  pack  of  thieves  a  gang;  a  gang  of  angels 
a  host;  a  host  of  porpoises  a  shoal;  a  shoal  of  buffalo 
a  herd;  a  herd  of  children  a  troop;  a  troop  of  part- 
ridges a  covey;  a  covey  of  beauties  a  galaxy;  a  gal- 
axy of  ruffians  a  horde;  a  horde  of  rubbish  a  heap; 
a  heap  of  oxen  a  drove;  a  drove  of  blackguards  a 
mob;  a  mob  of  whales  a  school;  a  school  of  wor- 


b4  TEIiliAL    Pl'fFALLS. 

shipers  a  congregation;  a  congregation  of  engineers 
a  corps;  a  corps  of  robbers  a  band;  a  band  of  locusts 
a  swarna ;  a  swarm  of  people  a  crowd. 

Fly  (for /ee).  "Flee  is  a  general  term,  and 
means  to  move  away  with  voluntary  rapidity;  fl.y  is 
of  special  application,  and  means  to  move  with 
wings,  either  quickly  or  slowly,  a  116,  tt  473,  x  65. 

Fly's  (for  flks).     i  22. 

Fond  (for  desirous).  "  'I  fancy  he  will  not  be 
very  fond  of  prolonging  his  visit."     v  231. 

Folks  {ior  folic).  "  As  folk  implies  plurality,  the 
«  is  needless."  r  365.  "In  New  England,  especially, 
iised  very  generally  for  people.  Neighbors  espe- 
cially are  folks."  tt  474.  "  Dr.  Johnson  says  of  folk 
that  'it  is  properly  a  collective  noun  and  has  no 
plur-al,  except  by  modern  corruption.'  Yet  John- 
son, as  well  as  others,  wrote  the  word  folks."  W. 

For  (for  from).  "Died  for  waat."— Goldsmith. 
v231. 

For  long  (for  for  a  long  time),     d  136. 

Forcep  {tor  forceps).  "Please  hand  me  &  for- 
cep."    g  21. 

Formal.  "It  is  curious  to  trace  the  steps  by 
■which  fonaality,  which  meant  in  the  language  of 
the  schools  the  essentiality,  the  innermost  heart  of 
a  thing,  that  which  gave  it  fonn  and  shape,  the 
forma  formans,  should  now  mean  something  not 
merely  so  different  but  so  opposite."    p  84. 

FoRMUL/E  {for  formulas).    "  It  may  be  regarded  as 


FLY FKOM    WHENCE.  85 

an  open  question  •whether  foi-mtdas  is  not  preferable 
to formulce."    c  70. 

Forward,  "upward,  downward,  toward,  and 
other  compounds  of  ward  have  been  written  also 
forwards,  upwards,  and  so  forth,  from  a  period  of 
remote  antiquity.  *  *  But  there  seems  hardly  a 
doubt  that  the  s  is  a  corruption,  as  well  as  a  super- 
fluity."    a  211. 

France.  )  ""We  consider  now,  and  consider 

Frenchman.  )  rightly,  that  there  was  properly  no 
France  before  there  were  Franks,  and,  speaking  of 
the  land  or  people  before  the  Frankish  occupation 
[A.  D.  438],  we  now  say  Oaid,  Gauls  and  Gaulish, 
just  as  we  should  not  now  speak  of  Caesar's  "  jour- 
ney into  England."  p  85. 

Fraud,  (for  Mm  who  commits  framed),     d  130. 

Friend  (fov  acquaintance).  "  Some  philosopher 
has  said  that  he  who  finds  half  a  dozen  friends  in 
the  course  of  his  life  may  esteem  himself  fortunate; 
and  yet  to  judge  from  many  people's  talk,  one 
would  suppose  they  had  friends  by  the  score."  x  66. 

FROM  (omitted).  "Ere  he  thoroughly  recovered 
(from)  the  shock." — Charles  Reade.     a  53. 

(superfluous).     With  thence,  whence,   v  353, 

dl09. 

From  out  (for  from).  "From  out  the  castle." 
d  110. 

From  Whence.  The  expression  from  whence 
though  seemingly  justified  by  very  frequent  usage, 


8t>  VEBBAL    PITFALLS. 

is  taxed  by  Dr.  Johnson  as  a  nervous  mode  of 
speech;  seeing  whence  alone  has  all  the  power  of 
from  whence,  which  therefore  api)ears  an  unneces- 
sary reduplication.     Blair,  I.  318. 

Freezcd  (for  frv:cn).  The  following  lexicogra- 
phers all  conjugate  this  verb  freeze,  froze,  frozen,  viz: 
Sberwo©d(1673),  Meige  1687),  Johnson  (1755),  Fea- 
ning  (1781),  Sheridan  (1780,  Walker  (1791),  Jones 
(1798),  Bootk  (1835),  Ogilvie  (1856),  Craig  (1858), 
Worcester  (1874),  Webster  (1875),  Latham  (1876), 
Chambers  (1870),  and  Stormonth  (1877).  It  is  there- 
fore, safe  to  say  that  the  English  diction:uios  for 
over  two  hundred  years  have  almost  uniformly 
formed  the  past  participle  of  "freeze"'  as  frozen  and 
notfreezed.  The  only  exception  we  liave  found  is 
Richardson's  dictionary  (1837)  which,  differing  from 
all  the  rest  in  this  particular,  rejects  both  "frozen" 
and  "freezed,"  and  conjugates  the  verb  Xhns:  freeze, 
froze,  frozed.     So  much  for  the  dictionaries. 

The  standard  English  (or  King  James's)  version 
of  the  Bible  is  good  authority,  and  it  uses  only  the 
form  "frozen."  See  Job  xxxviii.  30,  where  the 
Lord  says  to  Job:  "The  waters  are  hid  as  with  a 
stone,  and  the  face  of  the  deep  \s  frozen."  The  only 
classic  English  writer  who  uses  the  form  "freezed," 
so  far  as  we  can  remember,  is  Milton,  who  says,  in 
"Comus,"  line  449: 

"What  was  tliat  suaky-Iieadeci  (lorgon  shield 
That  wise  Minerva  wore,  uuconquer'd  virgin, 
AVherewlth  she  freezed  iier  foes  to  congealed 
stone." 


FREBZED FUTURE.  87 

But  among  the  wiHers  oa  English  grammar  we 
find  four— Cobbett,  Emmons,  Sanborn,  and  Goold 
Brown,— who  admit  "freezed,"  and  the  first  three 
of  these  four  grammarians  prefer  that  form. 

Fort  HER  "Means  more  in  advance,  and  back- 
wards has  a  directly  contrary  meaning.  It  is  impos- 
sible to  go  further  and  at  the  same  time  backwards, 
and  therefore  the  two  words  should  never  be  used 
together."    y  203. 

Fulsome.  "Properly  no  more  than  full,  and  then 
secondly  that  which  by  its  fulness  and  overfulness 
produces  first  satiety  and  then  loathing  and  disgust. 
This  meaning  is  still  retained  in  our  only  present 
application  of  the  word,  namely  to  compliments  and 
flattery,  which  by  their  grossness  produce  this  effect 
on  him  who  is  their  object."  p  86.  Graham  derives 
the  word  from fuli art— to  make  dirty;  hence  full  of 
filth,  nauseous,  disgusting,  y  12. 

Future  (for  siibseqnenf)  Her  fuf.ure  life  was  vir- 
tuous and  fortunate."  c  31, 


a-. 

Gallows.    See  Alms. 

Garble.  "  Was  once  to  sift  forthepurpn.se  of 
selecting  the  best;  is  now  to  sift  with  a  view  of  picli- 
ing  out  tlie  worst."  pp  373. 

Gent  and  Ptints.  "Let  those  words  go  to- 
gether, like  the  things  they  signify.  The  one  always 
wears  the  other."  a  211,  x  G8. 

Genteel.  Your  paragraphs  on  the  "gent" 
(and  to  define  a  gent  as  'a  "party"  as  wears 
'\pants,"  '  seems  to  me  singularly  felicitous)  suggest 
a  discussion  upon  an  allied  word,  which  has  agi- 
tated some  of  us  in  this  city  of  Central  New  York. 
It  began  in  this  way.  A  lady  whose  nature  and 
training  have  made  her  as  likely  as  any  one  to  be 
acquainted  with  and  observant  of  the  habits  of 
speech  in  good  usage  here,  spoke  of  a  dress  that  IMiss 
Emma  Abbott  had  worn  as  "genteel."  I,  who  had 
not  attended  the  concert,  remarked  that  it  was  not 
strange,  as  good  taste  in  dress  was  not  characteristic 
of  stage-singers. 

"But  this  dress  was  in  good  taste,"  replied  my 
lady,  puzzled;  "  I  said  it  was  genteel." 

A  long  discussion  elicited  the  fact  that  the  people 
of  this  city  still  regard  the  word  as  complimentary, 
though  I  am  quite  sure  that  by  the  educated  people 


GALLOWS — GENTLEMAN.  LADY.     89 

df  New  Englancl,  as  well  as  in  the  best  contempo- 
rary literature,  it  is  now  used  to  indicate  not  what 
is  refined,  but  what  seeks  to  be  so,  and  is  character- 
ized by  uaeasy  consciousness  of  effort,  far  removed 
from  the  well  bred  assurance  of  the  real  lady  or 
gentleman.     Emerson  says: 

"The  word  gsniUman  has  not    any    correlative 
abstract  to  express  the  quality.     OentiUty  is  mean, 
,  and  gentllesse  is  obsolete." — Prose  Works,  I.,  478. 

Gentleman,  Lady  (for  man,  woman),  a  180, 
c35,  aa  363,  390,  r  86,  100,  tt  478,  v  237,  x  66,  110, 
d  40.  33,  w  259,  443.    See  The  Guardian,  No.  26. 

"The  Duke  of  Sase-Weimar  was,  in  Alabama, 
asked  the  question,  Are  you  the  man  that  wants  to 
go  to  Selma?  aad  upon  assenting  he  was  told,  Then 
I'm  the  gentleman  that's  going  to  drive  you.  Pre- 
cisely the  same  thing  occurred  to  Sir  Charles  Lyell: 
'  I  asked  the  master  of  the  inn  at  Corning,  who  was 
very  attentive  to  his  guests,  to  find  my  coachman. 
He  immediately  called  out  iu  his  barrooin.  Where 
is  the  gentkman  that  brought  this  man  here?'  A 
few  days  before,  a  farmer  in  New  York  had  styled 
my  wife  woman,  though  he  called  his  own  daugh- 
ters ladies,  and  would,  I  believe,  have  extended  that 
term  to  the  maid  servant.'  I  know  of  an  orator 
who  once  said  at  a  public  meeting  where  bonnets 
predominated,  '  The  ladies  were  the  last  at  the  Cross 
and  the  firut  at  the  Tombl '  The  vulgarity  of  enter- 
ing a  traveller's    name   [?]  on  the  register  of  the 

house  aa  '  Mr. and  lady  '  is  only  surpassed  by 

placing  the  same  words  on  visiting  cards. "  tt  478,  X. 


90  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

A  clergyman  roafling  in  the  book  of  Daniel,  and 
feeling  uncertain  of  llie  pronunciation  of  Shadrach, 
Mesbacb.and  Abedncgo, referred  to  them  the  second 
time  as  the  same  three  gentlemen,     i  338. 

In  a  railroad  car  the  scats  were  all  full  except  one, 
which  was  occupied  by  a  pleasant  looking  Irishman, 
and  at  one  of  the  stations  a  couple  of  evidently  well- 
bred  and  intelligent  young  ladies  came  in  to  procure 
Beats.  Seeing  none  vacant,  they  were  about  to  go 
into  the  next  car,  when  Patrick  aro.se  hastily  and 
offered  them  his  seat  with  evident  pleasure. 

"But  you  -will  have  no  seat  for  yourself,"  re- 
sponded one  of  the  young  ladies  with  a  smile,  hesi- 
tating, with  true  politeness,  to  accept  it. 

"Niver  mind  that,"  said  the  gallant  Hibernian; 
"  I'd  ride  upon  a  cowcatcher  to  New  York  any  time 
for  a  smile  from  snch  jintlema nli/  ladies." 

And  he  retired  into  the  next  car  amid  the  cheers 
of  his  fellow  passengers. 

Perhaps  the  most  important  rule  to  observe  is  that 
where  adjectives  are  used  the  nouns  must  be  7naii, 
woman— not  a  polite  gentleman,  a  lovely  lady,  but  a 
polite  man,  a  lovely  woman. 

"It  is  not  because  in  the  phrases  lady  friend, gen- 
tleman friend,  a  noun  is  used  for  an  adjective  that 
they  are  so  offensive."  aa  396. 

Genuine.    See  Authentic;  also  ppp  305. 

Get.  "  A  man  gets  riches,  gets  a  wife,  gets  child- 
i-en,  gets  well  ( after  falling  sick,)  gets  him  to  bed, 


GENTLEMAN.    LADY — GET.  91 

gets  up,  gets  to  his  journe5''s  end— in  brief  gets  any 
thing  that  he  wants  and  successfully  strives  for. 
But  we  constantly  hear  educated  people  speaking  of 
getting  crazy,  of  getting  a  fever,  and  even  of  getting  a 
flea  on  one.  A  man  hastening  to  the  train  will  say 
that  he  is  afraid  of  getting  left.  *  *  The  worst 
common  misuse  of  this  word,  however,  is  to  ex- 
press simple  possession.  *  *  Possession  is  com- 
pletely expressed  by  liave;  get  expresses  attainment 
by  exertion."    a  117,  x  69. 

"Even  so  able  a  writer  as  Prof.  Whitney  ex- 
presses himself  thus:  'Who  ever  yet  got  through 
learning  his  mother  tongue,  and  could  say,  "The 
work  is  done." '  "  r  343,  g  23,  tt  479. 

"One  very  striking  peculiarity  of  the  English  lan- 
guage is  the  extraordinary  variety  of  senses  in  which 
many  of  our  words,  especially  those  of  Saxon  origin, 
may  be  used.  A  curious  instance  of  this  variety 
may  be  seen  in  the  case  of  the  verb  to  get.  For  ex- 
ample; "  After  I  got  ( received )  your  letter,  I  imme- 
diately got  ( mounted )  on  horseback,  and  when  I  got 
to  (reached)  Canterbury,  I  got  (  procured  )  a  chaise 
and  proceeded  to  town.  But,  the  rain  coming  on, 
!.£?(?<  (caught)  such  a  severe  cold  that  I  could  not 
get  rid  of  it  for  some  days.  When  I  got  home;  I  got 
up-stairs,  and  ^cHo  bed  immediately;  but  the  next 
morning  I  found  I  could  neither  get  down  stairs,  get 
my  breakfast,  nor  get  out  of  doors.  1  was  afraid  I 
should  never  get  over  this  attack, '  It  may  be  reason- 
ably doubted  if  any  word  of  Latin  or  French  origin 


92  VERBAL  PITFALLS. 

lias  half  so  many  and  such  various  significations." 
y  189. 

"Hardly  any  word  in  the  English  language  is  so 
abused  as  the  word  got.  A  man  says,  '  I  have  got  a 
cold;'  he  means,  '1  have  a  cold.'  Another  says, 
'  That  lady  has  got  a  fine  head  of  hair,'  which  may 
be  true  if  the  hair  is  false,  otherwise  the  got  should 
be  omitted.  A  third  says.  '  I  have  got  to  leave  the 
city  for  New  York  this  evening,'  meaning  only  that 
he  has  to  leave  the  city,  etc.  Nine  out  of  ten  who 
enter  a  dry  goods  store  ask,  '  Have  you  got '  such 
an  article  ?  A  man  may  say  correctly  '  I  have  got 
more  than  my  neighbor  has,  because  I  have  been 
industrious;'  but  he  cannot  say  'I  have  got  a 
longer  nose,'  however  long  his  nose  may  be,  unless 
it  be  an  artificial  one." 

"  When  the  object  has  been  to  visit  a  friend  or  to 
attain  a  certain  point,  we  sometimes  hear  the  excuse 
for  failure  thus  expressed.  'I  meant  to  come  to 
you,  but  I cov.ldn'i  geV  The  verb  get  is  used  in  so 
many  meanings  that  it  is  hardly  fit  for  this  elliptical 
position."    i  110. 

Gifted.     See  Talented. 

Glass  of  Watek  (for  some  water.)    d  133. 

Girl  (for  davghier).  A  father,  on  being  request- 
ed by  a  rich  and  vulgar  fellow  for  permission  to 
marry  "one  of  his  girls,"  gave  this  rather  crushing 
reply:  "Certainly.  Which  one  would  3'ou  prefer — 
the  waitress  or  the  cook? " 


GET — GIRLED     UP.  93 

Girled  np.  The  Springfield  RepvUican  sug- 
gests a  new  colloquial  expression  for  the  next  edi- 
tion of  Webster's  dictionary.  It  was  invented  by  an 
anxious  father  on  the  occasion  of  an  interview  with 
the  principal  of  one  of  the  Hampden  county  acade- 
mies, where  the  co-education  of  boys  and  girls  still 
prevails.  The  boy  in  the  case  had  formerly  been 
studious  and  promising,  but  for  several  months  past 
had  gradually  fallen  off  from  his  previous  standard, 
growing  so  careless  and  unscholarly  that  it  became 
a  serious  question  whether  he  would  be  able  to  pass 
his  college  entrance  examination.  It  was  a  coinci- 
dence that  he  had  meanwhile  become  conspicuous 
as  a  ladies'  man.  The  principal  having  alluded  to 
this  as  a  prominent  cause  of  the  boy's  demoraliza- 
tion, "Yes,"  broke  in  the  father,  "I  know  it;  he's 
got  ?t\\  girled  up."  Which  the  Republiean  thinks  is 
a  remarkably  happy  and  pregnant  phrase.  If  there 
is  anything  that  plays  the  mischief  with  the  girls 
and  boys  during  that  budding,  downy  and  velvety 
period  of  their  teens,  when  they  ought  to  be  laying 
solid  and  permanent  educaticual  foundations,  it  is 
this  premature  efflorescence  of  the  sexual  period, 
which  moves  boys  and  girls,  who  ought  to  be  kept 
down  to  study,  to  perk  and  prim  and  sidle,  and 
play  with  each  other's  eyes,  and  write  silly  and 
badly-spelled  notes  to  each  other,  and  eat  slate- 
pencils  in  private.  But  then,  it  rarely  lasts  long;  it 
is  less  harmful  than  tobacco  or  whiskey,  and  there 
is  no  law  "agin  "  youths  of  that  age  making  fools 
of  themselves. — Springfield  Repuhllcan. 


94  "VERBAL   PITFALLS. 

Go.     For  many  slang  phrases,  see  It  684. 

GO  PAST  (for  go  by.)  r  361.     Allowed  by  Wb. 

Golden,  "brazen,  leaden,  leathern,  whcaten,  oaten, 
and  waxen  are  all  in  more  or  less  advanced  stages  of 
departure.  They  all  appear  in  poetry,  but  are  not 
often  used  for  the  every  day  needs  of  life,  except  in 
figurative  poetry.  Most  people  would  say  '  a  gold 
candlestick,  a  brass  faucet,  a  ^miZpipe,  and  so  forth, 
but  a  golden  harvest,  a  brazen  face,  a  leaden  sky,  *  * 
Golden,  meaning  made  of  gold,  and,  of  course,  like 
gold,  now  is  generally  used  to  mean  the  latter  only; 
and  for  the  former  sense  the  nonn  gold  is  used  as  an 
adjective.     This  is  to  be  deplored."    a  259,  y  209. 

Good  looking.  " To  speak  of  a  welllooldng  man 
would  be  ridiculous:  all  usage  is  against  the  word." 
il06. 

Go  CART,     a  232. 

Goodiiess's  (for  goodness').  For  goodnesses  sake, 
i  26. 

Goods  (for  material),  a  144,  tt  302,  x  69. 

Goose.  What  is  the  plural  of  a  tailor's  goose?  We 
all  know  the  story  of  the  tailor  who  first  wrote: 
"Please  send  me  two  tailor's  geese."  That  did  not 
seem  right,  so  he  took  another  sheet,  and  began, 
"Please  send  me  two  tailor's  gooses."  That  was 
still  worse,  so  he  began  again  thus:  "Please  send 
me  a  tailor's  goose;  in  fact,  while  you  are  about  it, 
you  may  as  well  at  the  same  timesend  another  one." 

Got  (for  gotten,  as  participle),  a  118,  tt  479.  But 
see  vv  65.    Gotten,  obsolescent. 


GO — GRADUATED.  95 

Governmental.  "Long  condemned  by  English 
authorities  as  a  barbarism."  tt  252.  "A  modern 
word  now  much  used  both  in  England  aud  America, 
though  the  use  of  it  has  been  censured."    W. 

Graduated  (for  was  graduated),  x  71,  X,  d  112. 
"  'After  graduating  '  is  erroneous;  though  it  is  true 
somebody  has  used  that  phrase  who  should  not  have 
used  it,  and  thus  given  it  the  stamp  of  literary  car- 
rency.  It  should  be  'after  graduaC/o«.'  Themis- 
take  arises  out  of  the  common  form  of  expressiou, 
'He  graduated.'  A  moment's  reflection  will  demon- 
strate, as  we  think,  the  absurdity,  certainly  the 
awkwardness  and  incongruity  of  that  phrase.  The 
fact  is  that  the  honor  of  graduation  is  received.  A 
student  cannot  graduate  himself.  He  may  deserve 
and  win,  in  a  sense  he  may  take  graduation;  that  is 
the  sense  in  which  it  is  said  he  graduaiefi;  but  a 
slight  analysis,  further,  shows  that  he  can  '  gradu- 
ate,' or  be  graduated,  only  as  graduation  is  con- 
ferred upon  him  by  the  college ;  and  thus  we  come 
back  to  the  truth  that  he  is  a  recipient;  he  {^grad- 
uated. The  verb  is  passive  in  its  construction,  We 
do  not  deny  that  the  other  form  has  obtained  some 
respectable  currency,  but  it  cannot  be  defended. 

' '  Let  us  see.  If  it  be  said  that  a  man  '  graduates' 
— graduates  himself,  in  a  way,  he  having  taken  his 
part  in  the  graduation— we  should  say  of  a  boy  who 
has  received  conflrmation,  'He  confirmed'!  'I 
confirmed''  (!)  a  year  ago,'  would  be  quite  as  good  as 
'I  graduated  a  year  ago.'    Or  instead  of  saying, 


9t>  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Ke  was  educated  at  Hobart,  we  should  say,  he  edu- 
cated (!)  there.  And  so  of  other  phrases:  He  dead, 
and  he  hurled!  But  at  the  beginning  he  horn!  These 
are  no  more  ridiculous  than  he  graduated," — Geneva 
Courier, 

Grandiose,    v  289. 

Grant  (for  wuchsafe  to  hear  us),    tt  240. 

Grammatical  error.  The  phrase  defended,  x 
71. 

Graphic  "means  'picturesque'  and  cannot 
rightly  be  used  in  speaking  of  sounds  and  accents, 
as,  '  She  suddenly  heard  a  loud  report  as  of  some 
heavy  body  falling  (5'ra^/tica%  termed  "  a  banging 
scrash.")'"— M//tie  Collins.     c31. 

Grass-widows.  "In  the  United  States,  wives 
separated  from  their  husbands  for  a  time  only,  and 
without  incurring  the  slightest  reproach."  tt  481. 
Vulgar.  W. 

Gratefulness,    s  183.    But  see  v  172. 

Gratuitous  (for  unfounded,  tmwarranted).  a  124. 
But  see  vv  79,  x  72. 

Great-big-  (for  large),     tt  442,  482. 

Grocery.  "  In  the  English  of  England,  does  not 
mean  grocer's  shop."    vv  87. 

Ground  {ior  floor),     d  134. 

Grow  {for  hecome).  "But  what  is  large  can  not 
be  reasonably  said  to  grow  smaller;  e.  g.,  after  the 
full,  the  nioon  'grows  smaller.'  It  lessens,  diminislies 


GRANDIOSE — GUMS.  Ml 

— the  opposite  of  growth.  And  in  general,  even  a 
change  of  condition  is  more  accurately  expressed  by 
become  than  by  groio."    a  125,  x  73.     But  see  vv  83. 

Gruesonie.     "Used  by  Browning."    pp213. 

Guage  preferable  to  gauge,  z,  aa  08. 

GUBERNATORIAL,  a  211,  tt  253.  "A  word 
sometimes  used  in  the  United  States." 

Guess.  "  The  only  difference  between  the  Eng- 
lish and  the  American  use  of  the  word  is.  probably, 
that  the  former  denotes  a  fair,  candid  guess,  while 
the  Yankee  who  guesses  is  apt  to  be  quite  sure  of 
what  he  professes  to  doubt."  tt  483,  y  179.  "  De- 
notes to  attempt  to  hit  upon  at  random.  It  is  a 
gross  vulgarism  to  use  the  word  guess,  not  in  its 
true  and  specific  sense,  but  simply  for  tliink  or  sup- 
pose."   Wb. 

Gu\nii  {U)\- overshoes),  "Emily  is  outside  clean- 
ing her  gums  upon  the  mat."    a  5. 


II —  "  A  student  at  one  of  our  military  academies 
bad  copied  a  drawing  of  a  scene  in  Venice,  and  in 
copying  the  title  had  spelled  the  name  of  the  city 
Vennice.  The  drawing-master  put  his  pen  through 
the  superfluous  letter,  observing,  '  Don't  you  know, 
sir,  there  is  but  one  hen  in  Venice?  '  On  which  the 
youth  burst  out  laughing.  Being  asked  what  he 
was  laughing  about,  he  replied  he  was  thinking  how 
uncommonly  scarce  eggs  must  be  there."    149. 

Habilitated  (for  dressed),   s  188. 

Had  BETTER.  "Had  ratJier  will  probably  yield 
to  would  rather,  and  hud  better  to  might  better.'"  a 
418,  aa  437,  r  347,  i  95,  x  73.  "  It  is  a  matter  of 
astonishment  that  that  excellent  book  of  reference 
[Wb.]  should  repeat  the  cheap  explanation  of  the 
ordinary  school  grammars;  viz.,  that  had  rather  is  a 
blunder  for  would  rather.  The  Journal  could 
hardly  find  place  for  an  adequate  discussion  of  the 
question,  but  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  indicate  where 
such  discussions  can  be  found.  See,  e.  g.,  Mdtzver's 
English  Grammar,  Vol  III.,  pages  7  and  8,  where 
the  author  remarks:  'This  idea  that  had  is  cor- 
rupted from  iDoidd  needs  no  refutation.'  There  is  a 
good  paper  on  the  same  subject  in  ScJiermerhorn's 
Monthly  for  December,  1876,  page  539.     The  most 


HABILITATED — HARDLY.  99 

■borough  historic  handling  of  the  phrase,  however, 
fvill  be  found  in  the  American  Journal  of  Philology 
for  October.  1881,  pages 281  to  322."— Mw  England 
Jourruil  of  Education. 

Had  better  been  (for  had  better  have  been). 
"  The  personification  from  line  303  to  309,  in  the  heat 
of  the  battle,  hadbetterbeenomiited."— Charles  Lamb 
(to  Coleridge.) 

Had  have,  a  347,  x  63.     See  Nowadays. 

Had  ought  (for  ougJit).     aa  427,  tt  608,  x  73. 

Had  rather.  See  Had  better. 

Half  {for  partly).  "  'In  his  ranting  way,  half- bes- 
tial, half-inspired,  half-idiotic,  Coleridge  began  to 
console  me.'— Hoyden.  Here  are  three  halves!  as 
in  the  Irish  translation  of  '  Gallia  omnis,'  '  All  Gaul 
is  quartered  into  three  halves.'"  c  23.  "A  half  is 
bettor  than  o?ie  half."    x  73. 

Hand  book  for  manual).  "An  unnecessary  inno- 
vation."   y  48. 

Handkerchief.  "  Kerchief  thus  meaning  origin- 
ally a  cloth  to  cover  the  head,  it  is  well  enough  to 
call  a  similar  cloth  for  the  neck  a  neck  kerchief,  and 
one  for  use  in  the  hand  a  hand  kerchief;  but  pocket- 
handkerchief  iii\(\  neck-handkerchief  are  the  abomina- 
tion of  superfluity  and  the  effervescence  of  haber- 
dashery."   aa  426,  tt  484,  y  143,  v  157. 

Hands  (for  laborers),   ppp  120. 

Hardly.     See  Scarcely. 


100  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Happen  on  (for  7neet  with).  Not  an  A.mericanism. 
V  190. 
Happify.    tt  239,  w  315, 

Habdwood.  "Comprises  all  woods  of  solid  tex- 
ture which  decay  speedily;  elm,  oak,  ash,  beech,  bass- 
wood,  and  sugar- maple."   tt485. 

Have  (perfect  infinitive  for  present).  "Might 
have  been  expected  to  have  at  least  gone  "  (at  least  to 
go.)— Froude.  a  49,  aa  271.  "Leslie  was  going  to 
have  spoken." — Mallock.  aa  478.  "Incases  of  this 
sort,  where  the  relations  of  time  are  clearly 
expressed  by  the  first  auxiliary,  it  is  evident  that 
nothing  is  gained  by  employing  a  second  auxiliary 
to  fix  more  precisely  the  category  of  the  infinitive; 
but  when  the  simple  inflected  past  tense  precedes 
the  infinitive,  there  is  sometimes  ground  for  the 
employment  of  an  auxiliary  with  the  latter.  1 
intended  to  go,  and  /  intended  to  have  gone,  do  not 
necessarily  express  the  same  thing,  but  the  latter 
form  is  not  likely  to  resist  the  present  inclination  to 
make  the  infinitive  strictly  aoristic,  and  such  forms 
as  I  had  intended  to  go  will  supersede  the  past  tense 
of  the  latter  mode."    w  317. 

Head-over-Hcels  (for  heels  over-head). 

Healthy  (for  healthful),  x  74.  Legitimate,  vv  70. 
"Inquirer— Are  plants  in  a  sleeping-room  unhealthy? 
Not  necessarily.  We've  seen  some  very  healthy 
plants  growing  in  sleeping-rooms." — Boston  Post. 

Hearty  (of  a  meal),    d  75. 


HAPPEN   ON — HOAX,  101 

Held  (for  lioled,  in  English  billiards),     s  74. 

Help.  "  '  I  gave  no  more  than  I  could  help '  is  a 
type  of  an  almost  universal  blunder;  how  universal 
■will  be  felt  at  once  from  the  awkward,  un-English 
sound  of  '  I  gave  no  more  than  I  couUl  not  help.'  Yet 
the  latter  is  undoubtedly  correct."    c  123. 

HELP  (for  servant),  tt  487.  Local.  W.  U.  S. 
Wb. 

Help  (for  avoid).  "There  is  no  better  English 
than  '  I  cant  help  it.'  "  a  125. 

Help  on  (for  help  along).  "Help  on  the  great 
battle  is  ludicrously  halt." — N.  C.  Advocate. 

Helpmeet  (for  help  meet),  a  126,   x  74.     Hall 

pronounces  helpmate  classical,  but  says  helpmeet  is 
not  to  be  defended,     v  156. 

Hence  (for  thence).  "  If  a  picture  of  the  chateau 
as  it  was  to  be  a  few  years  hence  had  been  shown 
him." — Dickens,     c  30. 

Hire  (for  rent,  of  a  house),   tt  491. 

Hither  (for  here).     See  Whither. 

Hiccup  preferable  to  hiccough,  z,  aa  68.  W.  and 
Wb.  prefer  hiccough. 

Hight.  "  English  has  one  passive  verb,  the  only 
one  known  to  me,  which  is  now  rarely  used. — higltt. 
This  word  needs  no  '  auxiliary,'  and  has  no  partici- 
ple: it  means  is  called."  aa  319.     Obsolete.  W.,Wb. 

Himself  (for  he).    See  Myself. 

Hoax.  Condemned  by  Swift  as  low  and  vulgar. 
Y  177. 


102  VERBAL     PITFALLS. 

Hollow.  "  A  verb  already  in  England,  from  of 
old  written  in  various  ways,  occurs  in  America  in 
like  manner  under  the  different  forms  of  hollow,  hal- 
loo, and  most  commonly  as  holler."    tt  489,  €09. 

Homely.  "In  England  used  for  home  like,  here 
serves  mainly  to  express  a  want  of  comeliness."  tt 
490,  r  294. 

Honorable  John  Jones  (for  th£  Honorable  John 
Jone-s).  "The  article  is  absolutely  required,  a  153, 
tt  258,  490,  X  170,  X.  "  The  omission  of  the  defin- 
ite article  before  the  words  'honourable,'  and  'rev- 
erend,' when  one  speaks  of  persons  entitled  to  those 
epithets,  has  become  very  common  of  late;  but  the 
author  of  this  book  is  not  aware  of  anybody's  having 
assigned  a  reason  for  the  omission.  Its  propriety 
may  be  tried  by  the  process  of  illustration.  Admit, 
for  the  sake  of  argument,  that  adjectives  do  not 
when  so  used,  require  the  article,  or  any  prefixe( 
word ;  and  then  see  how  its  omission  affects  thi ; 
paragraph : 

"  '  At  last  annual  meeting  of  Blank  Book  Society •, 
honourable  John  Smith  took  the  chair,  assisted  by 
reverend  John  Brown  and  venerable  John  White. 
The  office  of  secretary  would  have  been  filled  by 
late  John  Green,  but  for  his  decease,  which  ren- 
dered him  ineligible.  His  place  was  supplied  by 
inevitable  John  Black.  In  the  course  of  the  even 
ing  eulogiums  were  pronounced  on  distinguished 
John  Gray  and  notorious  Joseph  Brown.  Marked 
compliment  was  also  paid  to  able  historian  Joseph 


nOLLOW HUMBUG.  103 

White,  discriminating  plnlo«opber  Joseph  Green, 
and  learned  professor  Joseph  Bhxck.  But  conspicu- 
ous speech  of  the  evening  was  witty  Joseph  Gray's 
apostrophy  to  eminent  astronomer  Jacob  Brown, 
subtle  logician  Jacob  White,  and  sound  mathema- 
tician Jacob  Green.  His  reference  to  learned  Jacob 
Black  was  a  brilliant  hit.  Profound  metaphysi- 
cian Jacob  Gray  was  not  forgotten,  and  indefatiga- 
ble traveller  Peter  Brown  was  remembered  by  a 
good  anecdote.  Clever  artist  Peter  Gray  was,  in 
fact,  only  celebrity  omitted.'  "    dG6. 

How  (for  that).  "Have  heard  /toio  some  critics 
were  pacified  with  a  supper."  r  353,  x  78. 

How?  "The  imperious  way  of  the  New  Eng. 
lander  to  ask  for  a  repetition  of  what  he  has  failed 
to  understand."    it  610. 

Humanitariau  {ior  humane).  "It  is  a  theo- 
logical word;  and  its  original  meaning  is,  One  who 
denies  the  godhead  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  insists  upon 
his  humane  nature."  a  137.  But  Hall  defends  the 
word,  saying,  'A  humane  action,  if  the  result  of 
principle,  is  the  result  of  humanitarian  principle." 
v3I6,  x79. 

Humble.  "We  still  sometimes,  even  in  good 
society,  hear  'ospital,  'erb,  and  'wmWe,— all  of  them 
very  offensive,  but  the  last  of  them  by  far  the  worst  " 
i  43,  d  131. 

Humbug.  X.  "There  is  a  word  in  our  own  tongue 
which,  as  DeQuincy  observes,  cannot  be  rendered 
adequately  either  by  German  or  Greek,   the  two 


104  vekbal'  pitfalls. 

richest  of  human  languages,  and  witliout  which  we 
should  all  be  disarmed  for  one  great  case,  continu- 
ally recurrent,  of  social  enormity.  It  is  the  word 
humbug.  '  A  vast  mass  of  villany  that  cannot  other- 
wise be  reached  by  legal  penalties,  or  brought  with- 
in the  rhetoric  of  scorn,  would  go  at  large  with 
absolute  impunity,  were  it  not  through  the  stern 
Rhadamanthian  aid  of  this  virtuous  and  inexorable 
word.'  "    r  71,  806,  tt  492,  y  177. 

Hung  (for  hanged).  Suspension  by  the  neck  to 
destroy  life  is  indicated  by  hanged  rather  than  hung. 
X  73.  "Hanged  is  to  be  preferred,  yet  hu7ig  is  often 
used  in  this  sense."    W. 

Hurry  (for  hasten).  Hurry  implies  confusion, 
flurry,  while  haste  implies  only  rapidity,  x  79.  It  is 
hurry  that  makes  worry,  rather  than  haste  that 
necessarily  makes  waste. 

"  Richardson  calls  hurry  a  female  word,  and  per- 
haps women  do  make  use  of  it  oftener  than  men; 
they  consider  it  as  a  synonymn  to  agitation,  and  say 
they  have  a  hurry  of  spirits."      Vol.  I.  294. 

Hydropathy,    a  212. 

Hymen  ial  (for  hymeneal^. 


Z- 

I'd  (for  rid,  contraction  of  1  would),     aa  420. 

Ice  Cream,  Ice  Water  (for  iced-cream,  iced-water). 
"  Ice-water  might  be  warm,  as  snow-water  often  is. 
Ice  cream  is  unknown."     a  128.  x  80. 

Idea  {for  notion,  opinion).  "Perhaps  the  worst- 
treated  word  in  the  English  language."  pp  271,  v 
105. 

Identical  (for  self-same),     aa  498. 

Ideutified.  "To  say  that  a  man  is  identified 
with  a  cause  or  a  business  is  of  itself  a  coarse  strain- 
ing of  metaphor;  but  to  say  that  he  is  jn-ominently 
identified  with  it  is  past  the  extreme  limits  of  tolera- 
ble license."  aa  417. 

Identity  (for  identification).  "Identity  means 
'sameness';  identification,  making  or  proving  the 
same."    c  61 . 

If  (for  -whether).     Defended,  i  233. 

(omitted).     "The   lady   asked   him   was    he 

<;ome  to  finish  the  bust." — Rende.     a  52. 

Ilk.  "A  much  abused  word,  bemg  constantly 
substituted  for  stamp,  class,  society.  ]\Ien  of  that 
ilk."    tt  493. 


106  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

III.  "  For  the  use  of  ill — an  adverb — as  an  adjec- 
tive, thus,  au  ill  mtiu,  there  is  no  defence  and  no- 
excuse,  except  the  contamination  of  bad  example." 
a  197  But  see  a  109,  "an  adjective,  as  good  or  ill." 
vv  74.  83.  100.    "Bad,  ill,  or  infirm  health,"  W.  107. 

"Almost  all  British  speakers  and  writers  limit 
the  meaning  of  sick  to  the  expression  of  qualmish- 
ness, sickness  at  the  stomach,  nausea,  and  lay  the 
proper  burden  of  the  adjective  sick  upon  the  adverb 
ill."  a  196,  X  176.  "It  is  curious  to  notice  how 
sickness  of  the  stomach  changed  in  England  first 
into  nausea,  which  soon  became  vulgar  and  gave 
way  to  ihrowiiiff  vj);  this  also  fell  in  [into]  disfavor, 
and  i)07nit  was  substituted,  as  it  is  used  iu  the  Bible; 
in  its  turn  this  gave  way  to  jmking,  when  the  great 
king,  with  knee-buckles,  silk  stockings,  and  gilt- 
headed  cane,  also  gave  ;>w/i^.'(  to  high  bred  matrons 
and  fastidious  belles,  some  fifty  years  ago.  This 
also  was  soon  banished;  but  as  people  might  get  rid 
of  the  word,  but  could  not  free  themselves  from  the 
thing,  they  turned  once  more  to  their  first  love,  and 
sickness  was  restored  to  favor."  tt  543.  In  sense  of 
immoral,  see  tt  493,  v  234. 

Illy.  "Mr.  Lowell  has  said  that  the  objection 
to  illy  is  not  an  etymological  objection,  but  that  it 
is  inconsistent  with  good  usage.  Illy  is  not  so  vio- 
lently at  variance  with  etymology  as  some  persons 
seem  to  think  that  it  is."  a  399.  " There  is  no  such 
word  as  illy  in  the  language,  and  it  is  very  silly  to 
use  it."    r343,  tt  493,  x  80.     "People  who  use  i% 


ILL IMPKOVE.  107 

ought  to  know  that  tcelly  is  equally  good  English." 
d  26.  "A  word  sometimes  used,  though  improp- 
erly, for  ill"     W. 

Imbroglio  (for  quarrel),     r  102.     "A  compli- 
cated and  embarrassing  state  of  things."     Wb. 
Immaterial  (for  tcorthless).     y  39. 

Ininiediately  (for  as  soon  as).  "Yet,  ludi- 
crously enough,  imvudiately  the  fashionable  mag- 
nates of  England  seize  on  any  French  idiom,  the 
French  themselves  not  only  universally  abandon  it 
to  us,  but  positively  repudiate  it  altogether  from 
their  idiomatic   vocabularj*." — Rotten,    c  65,  tt  493. 

Immer.secl  (for  amerced).  '  Immersed  in  a  heavy 
fine."    i  39. 

IMMINENT  (for  dangerous),  c  31.  Allowed  by 
Wb. 

Immodesty  (for  indecency).    "  Indecency  may  be  a  - 
partial,  immodesty  is  a  positive  and  entire  breach  of 
the  moral  law.     Indecency  is  less  than  immodesty, 
but  more  than  indelicacy." — Crahbe.     x  81. 

Implicit  (for  a6so??/7(?,  unbounded).  "An  implicit 
faith." — C.  Kingsley.  Questioned  by  DeQuincey, 
but  defended  by  Hall,  vv  12. 

Improve.  "  'An  old  perversion  of  the  word  in 
New  England,  when  applied  to  persons.' — Benj. 
Franklin.  1789.  Now  the  word  is  applied  in  the 
same  way  when  speaking  of  things,  lands,  or  men." 
tt  493.  Should  not  be  applied  to  defects  or  wants., 
y  205. 


108  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Improvement,     tt  240. 

Impute  (for  ascribe.)    x  81. 

In-  "Is  tbe  regular  negative  prefix  of  substan- 
tives and  adjectives  of  Latin  origin,  but  not  of  verbs. 
Thus  we  have  rwvariable,  mfrequeut,  but-wftdiscrim- 
inating,  (/(^creditable.  Exceptions,  unahle,  uncom- 
fortable, w?2certaiu,  mmortalize,  ^7Jdispose,  j'wcapac- 
itate.  But  avoid  Cowper's  w?;frequent,  wjipolite, 
MMtractable."    c  33. 

"The  prefixes  vn  and  in  are  equivocal.  Com- 
monl}'  they  have  a  negative  force,  as  «?mecessary, 
wicomplete.  But  sometimes,  both  in  verbs  and 
adjectives,  they  have  a  positive  or  intensive  mean- 
ing, as  in  the  words  intenso,  wifatuated,  inva\uah\e. 
To  mvigorate  one's  physical  system  by  exercise  is 
not  to  lessen  but  to  increase  one's  energy.  The  verb 
unloose  should  by  analogy  mean  'to  tie,'  just  as 
untie  means  '  to  loose.'  //^habitable  should  signify 
not  habitable,  according  to  the  most  frequent  sense 
of  in."     r324,  y73.     See  Unravel. 

IN  (for  into,  after  verbs  of  motion).  aa412,  tt  493. 
In  is  often  used  for  i/ito,  and  without  the  noun  to 
which  it  properly  belongs;  as,  come  in.  that  is  i7ito 
the  house  or  other  place."  Wb. 

IN  OUR  MIDST.  "Some  persons  are  unwilling 
to  be  convinced  aljout  '  in  this  connection  '  and  '  in 
our  midst.'  '  To  me,'  writes  one,  '  there  is  no  gram- 
matical difference  between  "in  their  midst"  and  "in 
the  midst  of  them,"  both  being  absolutely  correct. 
This  is  a  mistake.     'In  the  midst  of  them  is  abso- 


IMPROVEMENT IN  SO  FAR  AS.  109 

lutely  correct;  '  in  their  midst'  is  absolutely  incor- 
rect. 'Yet,'  writes  another,  '  these  phrases  are  gram- 
matically correct,  exceedingly  useful,  and  highly 
idiomatic'  This  gentleman  is  also  mistaken  in  every 
respect.  The  phrases  are  neither  correct  nor  useful, 
and  they  are  directly  the  reverse  of  idiomatic.  Idio- 
matic phrases  are  old  phrases  grovping  out  of  the 
very  roots  of  the  language,  sometimes  apparently 
incorrect,  yet  always  correct  when  profoundly  ex- 
amined in  the  light  of  philology  and  history. 
Phrases  that  are  truly  idiomatic  are  always  beauti- 
ful and  congenial  to  all  the  rest  of  the  language; 
but  phrases  like  'in  our  midst'  are  not  only  the 
opposite  of  idiomatic,  but  tliey  liave  no  congruity 
with  the  genius  of  the  language,  and  are  the  mere 
inventions  and  clumsy  devices  of  modern  ignorance 
and  presumption.' — iV.  Y.  Sun.     See  Midst.  X. 

In  despite  op  (for  despite),     x  43. 

In  REGARD  TO)       /  With  ve^ava  to        X        . .  ^^^^^ 

In  respect  of  )  \  J^^^  V  respect  to.  J 
Alford  roundly  asserts  that  in  respect  of  '  is  certainly 
as  much  used  l)y  good  modern  writers  as'  icith  re- 
spect to  (i  195).  The  Dean,  if  he  had  a  serviceable 
memory,  could  have  given  no  more  satisfactory 
proof  than  he  thus  gives  of  the  straitened  limits  of 
his  literary  associations.  It  is  noticeable  also  that 
he  appears  to  be  acquainted  with  only  one  sense 
borne  by  the  expression,  namely,  that  of  as  to."  v 
84,  w  661,  X  82. 

In  so  far  as  (for  so  far  as),     x  82,  d  71. 


110  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

In  that  (for  in  this  respect  that).  Differed  only  in 
that  it  was  blue,     d  70. 

Inaptitude  "and  iveptitnde  liave  been  usefully 
despecificated.  and  only  the  latter  now  imports 
Jolly."    V  805. 

INAUGURATE  (for  beyin,  open,  net  up,  establish). 
"To  inaugurate  is  to  receive  or  induct  into  office 
with  solemn  ceremonies.'  a  128,  X,  x  82  r  101. 
But  Hall  has:  "The  era  of  galvanized  sesquipedal- 
ism  and  sonorous  cadences,  inaugurated  by  John- 
son."    V  148. 

Independent.  "Applied  to  lifeless  objects,  as 
'  B.n  independentiorinne,' IS  unwarrantable."  tt  494. 

Index.  "We  should  say  indexes  and  memordn- 
dums,  uoi  indices  and  memoranda."  aa21,  415,  449, 
T  359.     But  see  x  120. 

Indorse  (for  ajjprove,  xiphoid),     a  129,  x  85,  X. 

Indifferent.  "A  thing  which  does  not  differ 
from  others  is  thereby  qualified  nspwr;  a  sentence 
of  depreciation  is  passed  upon  it  when  it  is  declared 
to  be  indiff'erent.  But  this  use  of  words  is  modern. 
Jvdiff'crtit  was  impartial  once,  not  vuil.ing  differ- 
ences where  none  really  were."  p  108.  Cf.  "Good, 
bad,  indiff'erent.'"  "A  magistrate  who  'indifferently 
administered  justice  '  meant  formerly  a  magistrate 
-who  administered  justice  impartially."    r  221. 

Individuals  [tor  persons) .  "  Only  when  these  are 
viewed  as  atoms  or  units  of  a  whole."  c  33,  i  246, 
.aa  389,  r  97,  vv  18,  x  85.     "  We,  \i?,mg  individual  as 


INffHAT INITIATE.  Ill 

person,  have  ia  fact  recurred  to  the  earlier  mean- 
ing."   p  108. 

"Cunau  had  a  simihxr  ludicrous  adventure  with 
a  lishwomau  at  Cork.  Taking  up  the  gauntlet 
when  assailed  by  her'on  the  quay,  he  speedily  found 
that  he  was  over-matched,  and  that  he  had  nothing 
to  do  but  to  beat  a  retreat.  '  This,  however,  was  to 
be  done  with  dignity;  so,  drawing  myself  up  dis- 
dainfully, I  said,  "  Madame,  I  scorn  all  further  dis- 
course with  such  an  indmdunl."  She  did  not  under- 
stand the  word,  and  thought  it.  no  doubt,  the  very 
hyperbole  of  opprobrium.  "  Individual,  you  vaga- 
bond! "  she  screamed,  "  what  do  you  mean  by  that? 
I'm  no  more  an  indiridual  tuan  your  mother  was!  " 
Never  was  victory  more  complete  The  whole  sis- 
terhood (lid  homage  to  me,  and  I  left  the  quay  of 
Cork  covered  with  glory.'  "     r  279. 

lufalliblc  (for  inevitable),     c  34. 
Inferior  (tor  of  small  abilities).      An    inferior 
man.     r  349,  i  108. 

INFINITIVE  (for  participle).  "  Spoke  distinctly 
to  have  seen.-  —Fronde,  a  51.  Generally  preferable 
■to  participle,  when  correct,     x  85. 

(the  to  should  not  be  separated  from  the  verb 

•by  adverb),     r363.il 88. 

Ingenious  )      "The  first    indicates  mental,    the 
Ingenuous  J  second,  moral,  qualities."     p  110,  aa 

396. 
Initiate  (for  begin),     a  128,  x  85. 


112  VERBAL     riTFALLS. 

Inimical.  "Not  very  popular,  in  spite  of  its  four 
syllables."    y  54,  v  287. 

Inmates  (for  houseJiold).     a  129. 

Innate  (for  inbred).  "Innate  depravity  due  to- 
early  training"  {\)—Griffii/ts.     c  34. 

Innumerable  number,     r  361,  s  104,  x  85. 

Inst,  (for  this  month),     a  169. 

Instable  (for  uriHtable).     d  30. 

INSTITUTE.  "Had  once  in  English  meaning 
co-extensive  with  that  of  the  Latin  word  it  repre- 
sents We  now  inform,  instruct,  but  we  do  not 
institute  children  any  uK^re. "  p  112.  "Obsolete." 
Wl). 

Institution.  "  Whatever  is  looked  upon  as  a 
permanent  and  essential  part  of  any  system  is  apt  to 
be  so  designated  by  careless  writers."     tt  279 

Interference  (for  interposition),     ppp  301. 

luterpellatioii  (for  question),     r  102. 

Interi>rete<l  (for  rtcto?,  played,  sung.)    aa  493. 

Interview  (as  a  verb).  "  Just  so  it  is  with  oya- 
tered  and  interviewed.  Those  who  like  them  [here 
R.  G.  W.  is  painfully  sarcastic]  may  use  them  with- 
out the  slightest  fear  that  the}'  are  violating  any  rule 
or  analogy  of  the  English  language. "     aa  309,  tt  494. 

Into  (for  in)  "  To  keep  stragglers  into  line."— 
Fronde,  a  49.  "  Allowed  2«Yo  society." — .1.  Trol- 
lope.  "  Yet  here  the  fault  is  in  the  unhappy  use  of 
allow."  aa  412. 


INIMICA^ INYKTEKATi!;.  113^ 

Intoxicated  (for  drunk).  "A  mau  can  be  intox- 
icated only  when  be  has  lost  his  wits  not  by  quan- 
tity, but  by  quality,— Ijy  drinking  liquor  that  has 
been  drugged."    r  103,  y  104. 

Introduce.  "We  introduce  the  younger  to  the 
older,  the  person  of  low  position  to  the  person  of 
higher,  the  gentleman  to  the  lady.  *  *  Yet  some 
ladies  will  speak  of  being  introduced  to  such  and 
such  a  gentleman."     a  147,  v  145. 

Intrinsecate.    a  221.     Obsolete.      Wb. 

Invent  (for  discover),     ppp  310. 

Intekse.  "  '  He  must  not  be  rash  indeed;  for  the 
inverse  of  Lord  Eldon's  maxim  will  ever  be  found 
true,  that  that  is  never  done  which  is  done  in  a 
hurry.'  What  does  this  mean?— apparently  that 
that  is  always  well  done  which  is  done  iu  a  hurry  ;^ 
not.  as  the  author  intends,-  that  that  is  always  well 
done  which  is  done  slowly."     c  17. 

Inversely  to  {ior  inversely  as),     i  195. 

INVEST  (without  an  object).  He  invests  in  a 
book,     aa  490. 

Inveterate.  "  Why  should  our  hate,  animos- 
ity, hostility,  and  other  bad  passions  be  inveterate 
(that  is,  gain  strength  by  age),  but  our  better  feel- 
ings, love,  kindness,  charity,  never?  Byron  showed 
a  true  appreciation  of  the  better  uses  to  which  the 
word  might  be  put  when  he  subscribed  a  letter  to  a 
friend.  '  Yours  inveterately,  Byron.'"  r  335,  y  75, 
v35. 


114:  VERBAL     PITFALLS. 

Invite  (for  invitation),     d  78. 

INWARDS.  "Nowadays  a  man  who  used,  ia 
geueral  society,  the  simple  English  word  [guts]  for 
which  some  New  England  '  females '  elegantly  sub- 
stitute in'ards,  would  shock  most  of  his  hearers."  a 
387,  tt  493. 

Is  (for  are).  "Their  general  scope  and  tendency 
is  not  remembered  at  idl." — LimVey  Marmy .  r  362. 
For  many  illustrations  see  y  61. 

Is  BEING  BUILT.     See  Being.  X. 

-IsE.  "  How  are  we  to  decide  between  «  and  z  in 
such  words  as  annt/iemati^e.  cauterize,  criticise,  deo- 
dorize, dogmatize,  fraternize  ViuA  the  rest?  Many  of 
these  verbs  are  derived  from  Greek  verbs  ending  in 
-izo;  but  more  from  French  verbs  ending  in  -iser. 
It  does  not  seem  easy  to  come  to  a  decision.  Usage 
varies,  but  has  not  pronounced  positively  in  any 
case.  It  seeems  more  natural  to  write  anathematize, 
and  cauterize  with  a  z,  but  criticise  is  commonly 
written  with  an  s  I  remem'oer  hearing  the  late  Dr. 
Donaldson  give  his  opinion  that  they  ought  all  to  be 
■written  with  s.  But  in  the  present  state  of  our  Eng 
lish  usage  the  question  seems  an  open  one."  i  39, 
V  297,  vv  54.  "The  leaning  here  is  decidely  toward 
ise."    y  115. 

-1st.  "  Perhaps  the  worst  of  all  these  malforma- 
tions is  the  class  of  new  nouns  made  promiscuously 
from  French  and  Latin,  German  and  Saxon  words, 
by  the  simple  addition  of  the  termination  i'it." 
Fruitist,  landscapist,  obituarist,  woman  suffragist, 


INVITK ITS.  1L5 

vineyardist,  wjilkist,  shootist,  singist,  stabbist,  strik- 
ist,  are  noted,     tl  657. 

Fitzedward  Hall  writes  of  Addison,  "The  latter, 
while  notably  distinguished  as  a  stylist,"  v  9,  27, 
and  defends  the  form,    vv  54,  57,  59. 

Issue.  "  In  legal  phraseology,  the  close  or  result 
of  pleadings,  by  which  a  single  material  point  of 
law  or  fact  depending  on  the  suit  is  presented  for 
determination.  When  in  a  trial  one  of  the  parlies 
demurs  to  a  statement,  he  is  said  to  'take  issue.'  The 
defendant  may  be  bound  to  admit  the  demurrer  so 
far  as  to  admit  his  right  of  inquiry,  and  then  he  is 
said  to  '  join  issue. '  Thus  to  '  take  issxie '  means  '  to 
deny,'  and  to  \join  issue  '  means  '  to  admit  the  right 
of  denial,'  but  by  no  means  to  "agree  in  the  truth  of 
the  denial,'  and  to  use  'Join  issu€'  simply  for  'agree' 
is  an  unwarrantable  perversion  of  a  legal  meta- 
phor."   c35. 

(for  number,  of  a  periodical),    d  94. 

It.     a  word  to  be  avoided,    x  107. 

It.  "Added  as  an  expletive  to  verbs  is  declared 
by  Mr.  Abbott  to  be  "now  only  found  in  slang 
phrases.'  That  may  be  so  in  England;  in  the  United 
States  nothing  is  more  common  than  this  addition, 
and  General  Grant's  phrase,  •  I  propose  to  fight  it 
out  on  this  line,'  has  rendered  it  historical."    tt  494. 

For  it  is  these,  etc. ,  see  v  40. 

Itkm  (for  piece  of  news)  tt  494;  (fov particle,  extract, 
■er  paragraph),     X. 

Its.     v  IJ59. 


Jail.  Preferable  to  gaol,     z,    aa.  68. 

Jealous.     "In  its  general  sense  means  zealous.*'' 
s53. 

Jeopardize,  a  214,  r  357,  d  11,  x  109,  X  Defended, 
vv  55.  "This  is  a  moderu  word  much  used  in  the 
United  States,  and  it  is  also  used  by  various  respect- 
able English  writers."     \V. 

Jews.  "  The  Jews  are  a  peculiar  people,  who,  in 
virtue  of  that  strongly  marked  and  exclusive  nation- 
ality which  the}^  so  religiously  cherished,  have  out- 
lived the  Pharaohs  who  oppressed  them,  and  who 
seem  likely  to  outlive  the  Pyramids  on  which  they 
labored.  And  when  they  are  mentioned  as  Jews, 
no  allusion  is  meant  or  made  to  their  religion,  but  to 
their  race.  *  *  A  Jew  is  a  Jew,  whether  he  holds 
to  the  faitli  of  his  fathers,  or  leaves  it  for  that  of 
Christ  or  of  Mohammed."    a  131,  aa  380,  tt  495. 

"  Some  time  ago  the  publishers  of  Webster's  Dic- 
tionary permitted  themselves  to  be  persuaded  by 
Mr.  Solomons,  a  very  respectable  Hebrew  book- 
seller in  Washington,  to  tamper  with  the  text  of 
their  great  work  by  striking  out  one  of  the  detini- 
tions  given  to  the  word  '  Jew,'  explaining  an  oppro- 
brious sense  in  which  that  word  has  been  used  for 
centuries  in  English  literature.  Next  came  a  request 
in  tile  interest  of  Catholics  to  cancel  the  opprobrious- 


JAIL JEWELRY.  117 

■sense  in  which  the  word  '  Jesuitical '  has  been  used 
nearly  as  long.  By  this  time  the  publishers  seem  to 
■have  got  their  eyes  opened.  The  business  of  a 
maker  of  definitions  in  dictionaries  is  not  to  save 
people's  feelings,  but  to  tell  what  words  mean,  and 
in  what  senses  they  are  used  in  literature  and  life. 
It  is  not  their  fault  that  it  has  become  an  English 
idiom  to  speak  of  '  jewiug' down  a  tradesman,  or 
that  the  word  "Jesuitical '  has  become  nearly  a  s^'n- 
onym  for  hypocrisy.  These  are  the  facts,  and  it  is 
their  business  to  record  them.  When  they  quit  do- 
ing it.  they  quit  publishing  an  honest  dictionary,  and 
the  people  who  want  one  must  go  elsewhere.  We 
think  there  are  very  lew  intelligent  Hebrews  or 
intelligent  Catholics  who  can  give  a  moment's  con- 
sideration to  the  subject  without  coming  to  precisely 
the  same  conclusion.  When  a  Hebrew  reads  in 
some  standard  author  of  'Jesuitical'  devices,  he 
wants  the  dictionar}'  to  tejl  him  exactly  what  is 
meant.  When  a  Roman  CathoJ'^  reads  in  Dickens 
or  Thackeray  or  Fielding  about  "jewing'  down  a 
shop-keeper,  he  wants  his  dictionary  to  tell  him 
what  that  means." — iV.  Y.  Tribune. 

Jewelry  (for  particular j^'cwefe).  "  Its  u.se  in  the 
latter  sense  is  of  very  low  caste.  Think  of  Cornelia 
pointing  to  the  Gracchi  and  saying,  '  Tlie.se  are  my 
jewelry,''  or  read  thus  a  grand  passage  in  the  last  of 
the  Hebrew  prophets:  'And  they  shall  be  miue, 
saith  the  Lord  of  Hosts,  in  that  day  when  I  make 
Ml^  my  jewelry  ' '"    a  131.     But  see  vv  85. 


118  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Journal  (applied  to  weekly  newspapers,  etc),  d 
93,  ppp  195. 

Jubilant  (for  rejoicing).     X. 

Just  going  to  (for  just  about  to),     x  110. 

Just  next  (for  next).  "  Is  not  '  next'  sufficiently 
definite?  This  is  a  single  example  out  of  scores- 
noticed  every  day  showing  the  endeavors  of  news- 
paper writers  to  strengthen  what  they  say." — N.  C 
Advocate. 

Just  now  (for  presently)  i  210.  "Very  re- 
cently."    AV's  definition. 

Justify  (for  defend),     d  85. 

Juvenile.     See  Divine,  aa  107,  X. 

Juxtapose.  "No  man  needs  the  authority  of 
a  dictionary  or  of  previous  usage  for  such  a  word 
^s.  juxtapose."  a  258,  v  334  "  We  should  regularly 
getjuxtaposit."  vv  75.     JuxtaposU  is  the  form  give© 

by  W.  and  Wb. 

A  J 


H^ids  {(OT  kid  glares),     x  110.  Colloquial.    Wb. 

Kind.  'A  grosser,  or  at  least  more  obvious  blun- 
der is  that  of  making  this  and  that  plural  before  the 
singular  nouns  kind  and  soi-l,  as  in — '  You  have 
been  so  used  to  these  [this]  sort  of  impertinences.' — 
Sid.  Smith."  c  156,  a  168.  Defended  by  Alford, 
thus.  "  We  are  speaking  of  things  in  the  plural. 
Our  pronoun  ifiis  reallj'  has  reference  to  kind,  not  to 
things:  but  the  fact  of  things  being  plural  gives  a 
plural  complexion  to  the  whole,  and  we  are  tempted 
to  put  this  into  the  plural.  That  this  is  the  account 
to  be  given  appears  still  more  plainly  from  the  fact 
that  not  unfrequently  we  find  a  rival  attraction  pre- 
vails and  the  clause  takes  a  singular  complexion, 
from  the  other  substantive,  kind.  We  often  hear 
people  say,  this  kind  of  thing,  that  sort  of  thing.  It 
must  be  confessed  that  the  phrases,  this  kind  of 
things,  that  sort  of  things,  have  a  very  awkward 
sound;  and  we  find  that  our  best  writers  have  the 
popular  expression,  these  kind,  tliose  sort."  i  77.  But 
in  a  later  note  the  Dean  says:  "  There  seems  every 
reason  to  believe  that  kind  and  sort  have  been  re- 
garded by  our  best  writers  as  nouns  of  number,  and 
as  such  joined  with  the  pronoun  in  the  plural."  i 
284. 


120  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Kinsman  (preferable  to  relative,  rehttion.  connec- 
tion). "In  losing  kinsman  we  lose  also  his  frank, 
sweet-lipped  sister,  kinswoman,  and  are  obliged  to 
give  her  place  to  that  poor,  mealy-mouthed,  ill- 
madeup  Latin  interloper,  female  relation.'"  r  134, 
It  456. 

Knights  Templar  (for  Knights  Templars) 

Knowing  (for  skilful),    v  269. 


Lady.     See  Gentleman. 

Last  (for  latest).     X. 

Last  (for  ^aWer,  of  two.)  "First  is  unavoidably- 
used  of  that  one  in  a  series  witli  which  we  begin, 
whatever  be  the  number  which  follow;  whether 
many  or  few.  Why  should  not  last  be  used  of  that 
one  in  a  series  with  which  we  end,  whatever 
be  the  number  which  preceded,  whether  many  or 
few?  The  second  invasion,  when  we  spoke  of  only- 
two,  was  undoubtedly  the  last  mentioned;  and 
surely  therefore  may  be  spoken  of  in  referring  back 
to  it  as  the  last,  without  any  violation  of  the  laws  of 
thought.  Nor  does  the  comparative  of  necessity- 
suggest  that  only  two  are  concerned,  though  it  may 
be  more  natural  to  speak  of  the  greatest  of  more 
than  two,  not  of  the  greater.  For  that  which  is 
greatest  of  any  number  is  greater  than  the  rest." 
108.  But  see  s  104,  105. 

Lawyer.  "In  America  the  uniform  name  of  the 
person  who  in  England  is  called  a  solicitor,  if  attend- 
ing to  our  legal  business,  and  a  barrister  if  appear 
ing  for  us  at  court  — the  distinction  not  being 
observed  in  this  country."    tt  498. 


122  vp:rbal  pitfalls. 

Lay  (for  lie).  "  Evea  Byron  uses  lay  incorrectly 
in  'Childe  Harold': 

And  dashest  him  again  to  earth— there  let  him  lay. 

"The  keeping  in  mind  the  distinction  that  lay 
expresses  transitive  action,  and  lie  rest,  as  is  shown 
in  the  following  examples,  will  prevent  all  confusion 
of  the  two. 

"  I  lay  myself  upon  the  bed  (action).  I  lie  upon 
the  bed  (rest). 

"  I  laid  myself  upon  the  bed  (action).  I  lay  upon 
the  bed  (rest). 

"  I  have  laid  myself  upon  the  bed  (action).  I  have 
lain  upon  the  bed  (rest). 

"A  hen  lays  her  eggs  (action).  A  ship  lies  at 
wharf  (rest).  The  murdered  Lincoln  lay  in  state 
(rest);  the  people  laid  the  crime  upon  the  rebels 
(action)."  a  135,  x  113.  tt  498,  s  97,  c  36,  r  345,  i  20, 
0:27. 

"  Some  years  ago  an  old  lady  consulted  an  eccen- 
tric Boston  physician,  and,  in  describing  her  disease, 
said,  'The  truth,  Doctor,  is  that  I  cau  neither  lay 
nor  set.'  '  Then,  Madame,'  was  the  reply,  '  I  would 
respectfully  suggest  the  propriety  of  roosting.'"  r 
345.  But  the  rude  physician  was  half  as  ignorant 
as  his  patient.     Hens  sit. 

Learn  (for  <mc7i).  x  114,  g  28.  "  This  use  of 
lea7-}i  is  found  in  respectable  writers,  but  it  is  now 
deemed  improper,  as  well  as  inelegant."     Wb. 


LAY LECTURE.  123 

JLeave  (without  an  object).  "  To  wind  up  a  story 
with,  '  Then  he  left,'  is  as  bad  as  to  say,  then  he 
sloped— worse,  for  sloped  is  recognized  slang."  a 
134,  r  354,  tt  499.  d  128.  "  Of  the  correctness  of  the 
usage  I  imagine  there  can  be  no  doubt."  i  110,  xll4- 

"  From  the  Evening  Post,  Oct.  28,  1882. 

"  'Two  weeks'  wages  are  now  due,  and  it  i3 
expected  that  many  will  leave  to-night,  although 
some  will  remain.' 

"'The  importers'  clerk,  it  is  said,  replied  that 
"  there  was  something  crooked,"  and  immediately 
left.' 

"  'The  Surrogate  and  counsel  and  other  persons 
compelled  to  remain  have  invariably,  after  breathing 
the  foul  air  all  day,  left  feeling  sick.' 

"Such  a  persistent  misuse  of  the  verb  to  leave 
would  better  become  a  journal  of  lower  pretensions. 
In  regard  to  the  first  two  quotations,  one  might  ask 
what  the  parties  referred  to  left  or  would  leave.  As 
to  the  last,  the  Surrogate  and  others  did  well  to 
leave  feeling  sick,  because  they  then,  of  course,  felt 
well."— iV:  T.  Sun. 

"'Annie  Louise  Gary  will  leave  the  stage.' 
Thanks,  Annie,  we  were  afraid  you  would  take  the 
stage  with  you.  So  kind  to  leave  it." — Cincinnati 
Saturday  Night. 

(for  let).     Leave  me  ie.     x  114. 

Lectuke.     "  It  is  very  common  to  hear  a  clergy 
man  spoken  of  as  preaching  a  sermon  in  the  morn- 
iag,  and  giving  a  lecture  in  the  afternoon:  by  which 


124  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

the  speaker  means  that  the  morning  discourse  is 
read  from  manuscript,  and  the  afternoon  one  deliv- 
ered extempore,  or  from  notes.  The  exact  meaning 
of  lecture  implies,  however,  the  act  of  reading, 
while  that  of  sermon  signifies  an  harrangue.  The 
only  origin  of  such  a  singular  interchange  of  mean- 
ings that  occurs  to  me  is  this:  that  the  leciu7'e  reaehed 
its  present  sense  from  being  the  designation  of  some 
sort  of  religious  meeting,  for  the  purpose  principally 
of  reading  the  Scriptures,  and  that  the  simple  expo- 
sition of  the  portion  read  being  naturally  far  more 
familiar  and  unconstrained  in  style  than  the  ordi- 
nary sermon  preached  from  a  single  verse,  caused 
the  name  given  to  the  whole  proceedings  of  such  a 
meeting  to  be  applied  to  the  expository  part  of  it 
alone."     s  48. 

Leniency  (for  lenity),     r  357,  X,  d  15,  x  114. 

Lengthened  (for  long),  c  37,  a  419,  aa  418,  tt 
239,  X  114,  X.  "This  daring  interloper  has  made 
good  its  way  in  the  language.  Expressive  of  a  new 
meaning,  the  wOrd  must  be  accepted." — Blackicood's, 
Oct.,  1867.  So  Lowell,  Biglow  Papers,  II.,  Pref. 
y  56,  V  56. 

Less  (for  fewer).  Less  than  fifty,  r  345,  aa  420, 
X  114.  "  'It  is  a  well-settled  rule  among  good  writ- 
ers that  few,  fewer,  fewest,  shall  be  used  in  describing 
objects  the  aggregate  of  which  is  expressed  in  num- 
bers, while  little,  less,  and  least,  are  applied  to 
objects  which  are  spoken  of  in  bulk.'  That  '  well- 
settled  rule    may  be  a  well- settled  rule,  yet  a  few 


LENIENCY LET.  125 

simple  illustrations  may  help  to  «7i-settle  it.  '  I  gave 
fewer  than  a  hundred  dollars  for  that  picture.'  '  My 
son  John  is  feicer  than  six  feet  high.'  '  Moses  was 
fewer  than  a  hundred  and  fifty  years  old.'  'The 
water  wheel  is  -no  fewer  than  sixty  feet  in  diameter.' 
No  doubt /ewjer  sometimes  is  a  better  word  than  less, 
and  no  doubt  its  use  for  less  is  often  a  mere  affecta- 
tion of  accuracy."  d  132. 

Lesser  (for  less)  "An  idiomatic  irregularity 
which  we  must  be  content  to  tolerate."  i  85,  x  115,  s 
105.  "Lesser  is  rarely  used  for  less,  except  in  certain 
special  instances  in  which  its  employment  has 
become  established  by  custom,  as  lesser  Asia  ( i.  e. 
Asia  Minor),  the  lesser  light,  and  the  like;  also  in 
poetry  for  the  sake  of  the  metre,  or  where  its  usage 
renders  the  passage  more  euphonious."     Wb. 

Liet's  (for  let).     "  Well,  farmer,  let's  you  and  I  go 
■  [let  us,  or  let  you  and  me  go]  by  ourselves." — Charles 
Reade.     a  52. 
Let.     For  many  slang  phrases,  see  tt  614. 

Liett  (for  let).  -'There  seems  to  be  a  habit  of 
expressing  any  less  usual  sense  of  a  monosyllabic 
word  by  doubling  the  final  letter.  Thus  I  have 
sometimes  seen  'This  house  to  kit.'  And  in  one  of 
the  numerous  mining  circulars  which  are  constantly 
swelling  one's  daily  parcel  of  letters,  I  observe  it 
stated,  that  the  sett  is  very  rich  and  promising. 
Thus,  likewise,  clear  profit  is  sometimes  described 
as  Tiett,  instead  of  7iei."     i  35. 


126  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Letter.  "We  are  using  the  word  letter  in  its 
wider  sense,  as  meaning  the  envelope  as  it  is  received 
unopened  from  the  post."    i  89. 

Liable  (for  likely)  x  115,  a  92. 

Lief.  "There  is  no  better  English  than  [liadi  as 
Kef."    aa499,  tt501.    But  see  v  238. 

Lieutenant.  "  The  pronunciation  of  this  word, 
by  all  good  English  speakers,  has  for  centuries  been 
leftenant.  That  is  its  pronunciation  now  in  England 
and  iu  Ireland,  and  by  the  best  speakers  in  Amer- 
ica." aa  242.  R.  G.  W.  gives  as  a  reason  the  inter- 
change of  u  for  V  and  hence  for  /.  Mathews  says, 
"  from  a  notion  that  this  officer  holds  the  left  of  the 
line"(!)  r  318.  "Almost  universally  pronounced 
leftenant  in  the  United  States,  and  the  difference 
between  army  and  navy  UeiUenant'i  treated  with 
Republican  indifference."    tt  500.  , 

Like  (for  as).  "Like  and  as  both  express  similar- 
ity, but  the  former  compares  things,  the  latter 
action  or  existence.  *  *  When  a-s- is  correctly  used, 
a  verb  is  expressed  or  understood.  The  woman  is 
as  tall  as  the  man,  i.  e..  as  the  man  is.  With  like,  a 
verb  is  neither  expressed  nor  understood.  He  does 
his  work  like  a  man,  not,  like  a  man  works."  a  137, 
r  345,  y  207,  i  234,  x  115.  See  tt  500,  where  the 
author  quotes  as  illustration,  ' '  I  did  not  feel  like 
saying  another  word." 

Like  (for  iiX-e  cw).  "Improperly,  because  need- 
lessly employed,  as  '  a  timid,  nervous  child,  like 
Martin  was.'"     c  118. 


LETTER — LOCATE.  127 

LiKEWi  E  (for  also).  "Also  classes  together  things 
or  qualities,  whilst  likewise  couples  action  or  states 
of  being."  r  346.  "Likewise  is  very  nearly  or  ex- 
actly identical  with  also."     Wb. 

Limb  (for  leg),     a  181,  tt  500,  g  28. 

Limbo.  "Not  slang,  as  often  stated.  The  Cath- 
olic Prayer-Book  says,  'Christ  descended  into 
Limbo."    ttSOl. 

Limited  (for  scanty,  slight).     "  Opinion  on  a  lim- 
ited acquaintance.'      An  'unlimited  acquaintance' 
would  indeed  be  strange."  c  37. 

Line  (of  goods),     aa  488. 

Lit  (for  lighted).  "Much  censured  as  an  Ameri- 
canism." tt  501,  X  115,  g  29,  "Obsolete  or  collo- 
quial."   W. 

Liiteratvire  (for  learning).  "  A  lady  of  no  deep 
literature." 

LIVE  (for  quick,  energetic),  tt  501.  Allowed  by 
Wb. 

Liveable,    a  238. 

Loafer.    X. 

Loan  (for  lend).  "Loan  is  not  a  verb,  but  a 
noun."    a  138,  x  115,  X. 

Local  (for  local  item).  "A  companion  to  editorial, 
of  still  worse  character."     tt  466. 

Locate  {for  place,  or  settle),  a  138.  x  116.  But  see 
V  173,  X. 


1  28  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Look  (followed  by  an  adverb).  "  '  Miss  Coghlan 
looked  charmingly.'  The  grammar  of  the  New  York 
Herald  would  not  have  been  any  more  incorrect  if 
it  had  said  that  Miss  Coghlan  looked  gladly  or 
sadly,  or  madly,  or  delightedly."  v  117,  d  59. 
"  '  Looks  beautifully'  is  a  phrase  heard  almost  daily 
from  the  lips  of  educated  men  and  women.  But  she 
is  beautifully,  or  she  seems  beautifully,  are  no  more 
improper  than  she  looks  beautifully.  We  qualify 
what  a  person  does  by  an  adverb;  what  a  person  is 
by  an  adjective;  for  example,  it  is  right  to  say, 
'  She  looks  coldly  on  him;  and  she  looks  cold.'  " 

Loose  (for  lose),     i  37. 

Lord  Bacon.  The  philosopher  never  was  Lord 
Bacon,  but  here  usage  prevails  against  pedantry. 
198. 

Lose.  "They  illustrate, "then,  the  common  use 
of  a  transitive  verb  witli  a  reflexive  pronoun  ex- 
pressed or  understood,  e.  g.,  'I amuse  myseif,'  ' the 
sea  breaks  (itself).'  There  are  two  verbs  that  are 
used  thus  by  the  best  writers,  but  with  questionable 
propriety, — 'to  lose  oneself  (for  'to  lose  one's  way'), 
and  'to  enjoy  oneself  (for  'to  enjoy  a  visit,'  or 
walk,  or  view,  etc.)  '  Coelum  non  animum  mutat' 
holds  good  of  wanderers  in  a  desert,  who  may  lose 
their  way,  their  baggage,  anything  but  themselves." 
c93. 

{As  to  pronunciation),  "But  when  usage  besides 
this  requires  us  to  give  the  o  in  lose  the  sound  of  u 
in   luminary,   we  feel  indeed  that  reasoning  about 


LOOK LUXURIOUS.  129 

spelling  aud  pronunciation  is  almost  at  an  end."  i 
37. 

Love  (for  like.)  "  A  man  loves  his  children,  his 
mother,  his  wife,  his  mistress,  the  truth,  his  coun- 
try. But  some  men  speak  of  lovini^  green  peas  or 
apple  pie,  meaning  they  have  a  liking  for  them." 
a  138,  X  117.  "  Still  less  say  of  anything  which  you 
enjoy  at  table,  '  1  love  it.'  'I  love  melons,'  ' I  love 
peaches,'  'I  adore  grapes '—these  are  school-girl 
utterances.  We  love  our  friends.  Love  is  an  emo- 
tion of  the  heart,  but  not  of  the  palate." 

Luggage  (for  baggage),     x  117. 

Lunch  (for  luncheon),     x  118. 

Luxurious  (for  luxuriant,  meaning  of  r;tnk 
growth).  xll8.     "Rare."  W.    "Obsolete."  Wb. 


Mad  (for  angry).  "  Excellent  old  English."  tt  503, 
X  118.  "  There  is  a  very  common  colloquial  use  of 
this  word  in  this  country;  and  in  this  sense  it  is  said 
to  be  very  common  in  conversation  in  England."  W. 

Madam.     Often  wrongly  spelled  Madame,    tt  504. 

Maintain  (for  ufliold).     d  85 

Majority  (relating  to  place  or  circumstances,  for 
most).     X. 

Make  a  visit.  "Whatever  it  once  was,  no 
longer  is  English."     vv  48,  x  296. 

Make  MONEY.  "Don't  you  see  the  impropriety 
of  it?  To  make  money  is  to  coin  it;  you  should  say 
to  get  money.'" — Br.  Johnson,    tt  118. 

Make  ^vay  willi  (iormake  away).  To  make  way 
is  to  move  more  or  less  rapidly,  to  dispatch:  to  go 
off  with  is  to  make  away  with."    aa  410. 

Mal.     aa  501. 

Man  and  wipe  (for  husband  and  wife),     d  131. 

Manner.  "The  manner  in  which  a  man  enters  a 
drawing-room  may  be  unexceptionable,  while  his 
maimers  are  very  bad."     r  325. 

Manufacturer  (for  shoemaker,  etc.).  a  139,  tt 
303. 


MADAME.  131 

Manufacttjral.     V  121.     Rare.     W. 

Marry.  "Properly  speaking,  a  man  is  not  mar- 
ried to  a  woman,  or  married  with  liev;  nor  are  a  man 
and  woman  married  toilh  each  other.  The  woman 
is  married  to  the  man."  a  140.  "  A  man  marries  a 
woman,  a  woman  is  married  to  tlie  man,  and  the 
priest  joins  tliemin  marriage.''     y  74.     See  vv  88. 

In  speaking  definitely  of  the  act  of  marriage,  the 
passive  form  is  necessarily  used  with  reference  to 
either  spouse,  for  (unless  they  were  Quakers)  some 
third  person  married  him  to  her  and  her  to  him. 
But  in  speaking  indefinitely  of  the  fact  of  marriage, 
the  active  form  is  a  matter  of  course."  x  119.  "A 
man  marries  a  woman;  or,  a  woman  marries  a  man. 
Both  of  these  uses  are  equally  well  authorized." 
Wb. 

Masses  (for  people).  "The  masses  of  what?"  r  349. 
Wb.  gives  this  use. 

Materialistic  (for  material),     d  18. 

Matinee.  "The  proper  term  for  a  morning 
reception,  or  a  morning  musical  or  theatrical  per- 
formance,"    d  113. 

Me  (as  a  dative).  "The  order,  Boil  me  an  egg, 
does  not  indicate  that  the  speaker  is  an  unhatched 
chicken  crying  out  to  be  cooked,  nor  in  rendering 
1  Kings  xiii.,  13,  '  And  he  said  unto  his  sons.  Saddle 
me  the  ass,'  is  the  emphasis  warranted,  in  the  next 
sentence,  'So  tliey  saddled  1dm.'"     aa  387,  321. 

Me  (for /,  in  "it  is  me").  "English  men,  wo- 
men, and  children  go  on  saying  it,  and  will  go  on 


132  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

saying  it  as  long  as  the  English  language  is  spoken." 
i  1^4.  "At  the  same  time  it  must  be  observed  that 
the  expression  it  ?*•  me  =  it  is  1,  will  not  justify  the 
use  of  it  is  him,  it  is  her  =  it  is  he,  and  it  is  she.  Me, 
ye,  you,  are  wliat  may  be  called  indifferent  forms, 
i.  e. ,  nominative  as  mnch  as  accusative,  and  accusa- 
tive as  much  as  nominative.  Hi'in  and  her,  on  the 
other  hand, are  not  quite  indifferent.  "—La^/i«»i.  But 
Alford  would  defend  him  and  her,  as  well  as  me. 
i  158,  38.5.  So  Bain,  x  33.  "Philologically  speak- 
ing, it  is  me  is  just  as  correct  as  it  is  you.  The  dif- 
ference between  them  is  tliat  the  latter  is  sustained 
by  the  authority  of  all  good  writers  and  speakers, 
the  former  merely  by  Ihe  authority  of  some.  The 
student  if  he  is  wise  will  therefore,  avoid  using  the 
former  method  of  expression ;  but  if  he  is  wise  he 
will  also  avoid  abusing  it." — The  Century  for  July, 
1S82. 

Means,  Measles.     See  Alms. 

Meat  (at  table,  for  beef,  mutton,  etc.).  "To  say 
the  least,  inelegant."     x  119. 

Mellay.  An  attempt  by  Tennyson  in  The  Prin- 
cess to  anglicise  the  French    word   melee,     p  130. 

Memorialize  (for  memorize),     v  171. 

Memorandum.     See  Index. 

Merchandising.  "A  barbarous  euphuism."  tt 
301. 

Mes.srs.  Jacksons'  (for  Messrs.  Jackson's). 
i  33. 

Metaplior  (for  simile),     g  30. 


MEANS MISSES    BROWN.  133 

Metaphysician  (for  psychologist).  "  How  far  the 
character  of  the  parent  may  intiuence  the  charac- 
ter of  the  child,  I  leave  the  metwphydcian  to  decide." 
— Disraeli,     c  38. 

Method.  "One  important  sense  of  the  word 
meiliod,  a  cunning,  crafty,  roundabout  way,  is 
entirely  lost;  which  may  teach  us  how  inaccurate  it 
is  to  talk  of  a  direct  method.'"    s  55. 

MEWSES  (for  meics).  i  30.  See  Alms.  No  plu- 
ral.    W. 

MIDST  {In  our  midst.)  r  349,  x  81.  But  see  y  48. 
"The  phrases  in  our  midst,  in  your  midst,  in  their 
midst,  have  unhappily  gained  great  currency  in  this 
country,  and  are  sometimes,  though  rarely,  to  be 
found  in  the  writings  of  reputable  English  authors. 
The  expressions  seem  contrary  to  the  genius  of  the 
language,  as  well  as  opposed  to  the  practice  of  our 
best  and  most  accurate  writers,  and  should  therefore 
be  abandoned ."    Wb. 

Militate  against  (for  be  at  variance  with.)  a  141. 
But  see  v  285,  345,  vv  89. 

Mighty  (for  «er^).   y  181.    Colloquial.  W.,  Wb. 

MISCEGENATION.  "  It  seemed  hard  to  make 
a  word  that  could  be  worse."  It  289.  "  A  rare  and 
ill-formed  word."    Wb.    Not  given  by  "W. 

Misuoniered.  a  411.  Mr  Hall  says  it  is  not 
wanted,  but  is  faultless,     v  195. 

Misses  Brown  (or  the  Miss  Browns).  "Usage  is 
all  but  universal  in  favor  of  the  latter  in  conversa- 
tion."   i  27,  B  245. 


134  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Two  of  our  young  men  went  to  Henderson  this 
week  to  see  the  Misses  Jones,  two  very  estimable 
young  hidies  there.  A  colored  girl  came  to  the 
door,  and  the  following  conversation  look  place: 

"  Are  tlie  Misses  Jones  in?" 

"  Yes,  sah,  Mrs.  Jones  am  in.  Does  you  want  to 
see  her?" 

"No,  we  want  to  see  the  Misses  Jones." 

"  Mrs.  Jones,  dat's  what  I  said." 

"We  want  to  see  the  Misses  Jones.  Can't  you 
understand?" 

"Course  I  kin.  De  Mrs.  Jones  am  de  old  lady. 
Dat's  de  only  missus  in  dis  hear  house." 

"  We  want  to  see  the  old  lady's  daughters." 

"  Oh,  de  Miss  Joneses.  Why  didn't  you  say  so? 
I  reckon  you'se  both  drunk.  C'ome  pesterin'  'round 
heah  wid  yo'  misses  and  missus  and  de.  You'd  bet- 
ter cl'ar  out,  you  can't  peddle  no  books  heah,  you 
heah  me?"  and  she  slammed  the  door  in  the  faces  of 
the  astonished  young  l)loods.  This  is  an  actual 
occurence.  — Evaiisville  Argtis. 

Mistake  (for  error),     d  78. 

Mistake,  "  'To  take  amiss,'  is  a  transitive  verb 
{'I  mistook  him  for  some  one*  else  '),  and  like  all 
transitive  verbs  has  a  passive  voice  (I  was  mistaken 
for  another').  There  are  of  course  passives  that 
have  a  middle  form,  'I  am  deceived,'  'I  am 
a-mused,' etc. ;  but  all  of  these  have  also  a  reflexive 
form,  'I  deceive  myself.'  '  I  amuse  myself,'  etc. 
This  mistake  has  not,  for  one  would  never  say,  '  If  I 
do  not  mistake  myself;    and  therefore  they  offer  no 


MISTAKE MirTKN.  135 

true  analogy  to  'I  am  mistaken,"  wliicli  is  neither 
necessary  nor  universal.  '  In  the  latter  sense  a  man 
\Xi&j  be  mistaken,  and  his  work  burned,  but  by  that 
very  fire  he  will  be  %?ived..' —Macdonalcl.  Here  the 
meaning  might  be  active  or  passive."  c  94,  d  77,  r 
323,  X  125.  But  Alford  siys:  "  We  expect  to  hear 
you  are  miataken,  and  should  be  surprised  at  hearing 
asserted  you  are  mistaking  or  you  mistake,  unless  fol- 
lowed by  an  accusative,  the  meaning,  or  me.  When 
we  hear  the  former  of  these,  we  begin  to  consider 
whether  we  are  right  or  wrong;  when  the  latter, 
we  at  once  take  the  measure  of  our  friend,  as  one 
who  has  not  long  escaped  from  the  study  of  the 
rules  of  the  lesser  grammarians,  by  which,  and  not 
by  the  usages  of  society,  circumstances  have  com- 
pelled him  to  learn  his  language."     i  106,  x  72. 

Mister.  "  An  abbreviation  of  the  Latin,  magis- 
ter,  master,  aad  in  England  it  h  applied  regularly 
to  persons  in  an  inferior  social  condition.  Any 
mechanic  or  workingmau,  who  is  there  looked  down 
upon  by  the  more  gorgeous  and  fortunate  portion 
of  mankind — every  man  in  England  looks  down  on 
somebody  and  looks  up  to  somebody — is  addressed 
as  'Mister;'  while  a  gentleman  who  has  no  specific 
title  is  addressed  as  'Esquire.'  In  this  country 
there  is  no  such  distinction  between  the  two." — iV. 
Y.  Sun. 

Mrs.  Governor  Cornell  (and  simdar  titles).  X. 

Mitten.  To  get  the  mittens  ought  to  be  the 
expression,  as  it  is  derived  from  the  use  of  the 
French  mitaines,  which  had  to  be  accepted  by  the 


136  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

unsuccessful  lover    instead  of    the    hand   after  (?) 
which  he  aspired,     tt  319. 

Modulate    (for  moderate).       "Modulate   your 

voice."    g  31. 

Moneyed,     i   109. 

Monies  (for  moneys),     i  28. 

Monthly.     See  Divine,  a  107. 

More,        j  [vi'iih.  perfect,  universal,  etc.).    x  125, 
Most  &c.  I  r  361,  d  142.  bb  46. 

mo^t  {ioY  almost).    "Inexcusable."  tt507,  x  126. 

Most  (for  very),     d  63. 

Mush-melon  (for  mu-sk-melon).     g  22. 

Mussiiliiieii  (for  mtissulmans)    r  365. 

Mutual  (for  common).  "It  should  always  con- 
vey a  sense  of  reciprocity."    c  38. 

"Thoue;h  Mr.  Dickens  wrote  Our  Mutual  Friend, 
and  not  at  all  with  any  intention  to  accredit  the 
expression  which  he  chose  for  his  title,  he  had  used 
a  similar  expression  in  sober  earnest  {Pickwick 
Papers);  and  in  the  collective  edition  of  his  works  he 
let  it  pass."  v  242,  o  302,  aa  396.  But  see  a  91.  "Not 
defensible  except  on  the  bare  plea  of  mutual  agree- 
ment." r  358,  i  223,  X.  "Mutual  implies  an  inteV' 
change  of  the  thing  spoken  of  between  the  parties; 
as,  mutual  friendship.  Hence,  to  speak  of  a  mutual 
friend  (as  if  a  friend  could  be  interchanged)  is  a 
gross  error."    Wb. 

Myself  (for  1).  "  'I  myself  have  done  it'  really 
equals    '  I  the  same  have  done  it  for  me,'  and  '  My- 


MODULATE — MYSELF.  137 

self  have  done  it '  is  as  incorrect  as  '  Me  have  done 
it.'  *  *  As  to  meaning,  himself  has  a  two-fold 
usage,  reflexive  and  distinctive,  e.  g.,  '  He  saw  him- 
self and  'He  himself  saw.'  It  is  the  distinctive 
usage  that  comes  in  question  in  sentences  such  as 
'John  and  myself  were  going.'  Here  there  is  no 
necessity  to  emphasize  the  personal  pronoun,  as 
there  would  be  if  the  sentence  ran,  '  John  had  pre- 
pared to  go,  but  was  unwell,  so  /  had  to  go 
myself"    1  121.  r  354,  x  137. 

The  reflexive  force  is  brought  out  by  the  follow- 
ing faulty  ellipsis :  Now  I  have  a  much  better  opin- 
ion of  myself  than  the  world  at  large  entertains  (of 
me). — C.  J.  Mattheics's  Autobiography,     c  90. 


XT, 

Name  (for  mention).  I  have  never  named  the 
matter  to  any  one.     x  126. 

Nasty  (for  disagreeable.  "This  word,  at  best 
not  vpell  suited  to  dainty  lips,  is  of  late  years  shock- 
ingly misused  by  British  folk  who  should  be 
ashamed  of  such  slipshod  English."  a  198,  tt  509. 
A  titled  Englishwoman  is  said  to  have  remarked  to 
the  gentleman  by  her  side  at  dinner,  "Do  try  this 
soup;  it  isn't  half  nasty."  "Though  these  two  last 
[Carlyle  and  Macaulay]  have  said  nasty  things  of 
Scott,  it  little  became  them  to  do  so."  Shairp, 
Aspects  of  Modern  Poetry,  p.  90. 

"  'Oh,  don't  you  think  "nice"  is  a  nasty  word?' 
asked  Oscar  Wilde  of  a  bright  Cleveland  girl,  the 
other  evening,  when  the  little  beauty  retorted: 
'And  do  you  think  ?i«si<?/  is  a  nice  word?'  The 
great  apostle  of  aestheticism  abruptly  changed  the 
subject." 

Near  (for  parsimonious),     v  203,  243. 
Necessitate,     a  141, 

Neither.  See  Either.  For  addition  to  nega- 
tion, "  not  so  well  as  they  neither,"  see  tt  510,  \:243. 

Neoterism.  Preferred  to  neologism  because  it 
does  not  suggest  either  praise  or  dispraise,  v  20. 
Not  given  by  W.  or  Wb. 


NAME NICE.  139 

Nervous.  ''A  nervous  writer  is  one  who  has 
force  and  energy;  a  nervous  man  is  one  who  is  weak, 
sensitive  to  trifles,  easily  excited."     a  322,  y  71. 

Nett  (for  net).     See  Let. 

Never  (for  ever).  Charm  he  never  so  wisely."  r 
351,  X  128.  "In  familiar  speech  we  mostly  say 
ever  so;  in  writing,  and  especially  in  the  solemn  and 
elevated  style,  we  mostly  find  never  so."    i83,  v  270. 

Never  (for  not).  "Napoleon  never  died  in 
France."     d  98. 

New  suit  op  clothes  (for  suit  of  new  clotJies).  x 
128. 

Nice  (as  an  omnibus,  a  "characterless  domino." 
— Hare).  "  Lastly  yiice  has  come  to  be  a  loose  and 
siiperfluous  synonym  for  agreeable.  '  It  is  now 
applied  to  a  sermon,  to  a  jamtart,  to  a  young  man, 
in  short  to  everything  '  (e  244)."  c  41,  p  141,  tt  510, 
vv  26,  X  128.  "Nice  is  derived  by  some  etymolo- 
gists from  the  Anglo-Saxon  hnesc,  soft,  effeminate; 
but  there  is  good  reason  for  believing  that  it  is  from 
the  Latin  nescius,  ignorant.  'Wise,  and  nothing 
nice,'  says  Chaucer;  that  is,  no  wise  ignorant.  If 
so,  it  is  a  curious  instance  of  the  extraordinary 
changes  of  meaning  which  words  undergo,  that  nice 
should  come  to  signify  accurate  or  fastidious,  which 
implies  knowledge  and  taste,  rather  than  ignorance. 
The  explanation  is,  that  the  diffidence  of  ignorance 
resembles  the  fastidious  slownesss  of  discernment." 
r  305,  358. 

"  What  then  are  the  qualifications  which  entitle  a 


140  VERBAL     PITFALLS. 

person  to  be  classified  among  'nice  people'?  *  * 
Generally  speaking  we  believe  the  phrase  is  conven- 
tionally understood  to  mean  people  who  are  received 
into  good  society.  It  does  not  necessarily  point  to 
the  rich  or  to  those  of  good  family,  *  *  but  it  is  a 
sine  qua  non  that  they  should  have  a  place  in  what 
is  known  as  '  society. '  " — London  Saturday  Review. 

Nicely  (for  iciell).  "The  very  quintessence  of 
popinjay  vulgarity  is  reached  when  nicely  is  made  to 
do  service  tovicell:  'How  are  you?'    '  Nicely.'  "  x  128. 

No  "  is  a  shortened  form  of  none  =  not  one,  and 
therefore  the  indefinite  article  is  pleonastic  in  '  Na 
stronger  and  stranger  a  figure.'  " — McCarthy,     c  70. 

No  (for  not).  Whether  or  no.  "  No  never  prop- 
erly qualifies  a  verb."  r  353,  x  129.  No  more  than 
you  can  help,  d  98. 

Nohow,    tt  510. 

None.  ' '  Etymologically  singular.  '  None  but 
the  brave  deserves  the  fair,' wrote  Dryden,  butoften- 
est  perhaps  the  line  is  quoted,  '  None  but  the  brave 
.deserve  the  fair;'  and  '  None  are  so  blind  as  those  who 
won't  see,'  is  certainly  the  current  version."     c  154. 

Nor  (for  or),     i  121,  x  128. 

IS  or  (for  than,  after  comparative).     "Better  7wr 
fifty  bushels."    tt  510. 
Nor  yet  (for  nai%     d  136. 

Not.  "  I  may  say  'what  was  my  astonishment, 
and  I  may  say  '  what  was  not  my  astonishment,'  and 
I  may  convey  the  same  meaning.     By  the  former  I 


NICELY NUMBER.  141 

mean,  'How  great  was  my  astonishment;'  by  the 
latter,  that  no  astonishment  could  be  greater  than 
mine  was."     184. 

Notion  (for  indiaation).  "I  have  a  notion  to 
go."  "Of  course  incorrect."  tt  511.  Colloquial 
and  low.     Wb. 

Notorious  (for  n/)ted).     x  130. 

Notwithstanding  (as  a  conjunction).  "  We  say 
correctly,  '  nohcithstnnding  his  objections,'  but  not 
properly,  'notwithstanding  he  objected.'  "  y  207, 
V  292.  "Now  little  used  in  either  of  the  above 
senses  [however,  although]  by  good  writers."  W. 

NOVITIATE  (for  novice),  c  62.    Allowed  by  Wb. 

Nowadays.  "  It  has  been  remarked  that  nowa- 
days and  had  have  meet  all  the  conditions  of  good 
usage,  being  reputable,  national  and  present;  but 
one  is  a  solecism,  the  other  a  barbarism."  r  H34. 
Frequently  used  by  Hall,  v  154,  &c.    See  also  vv  6. 

Noways  (for  710  ?cay.)    d  25. 

Nowliercs  (for  no  where),     d  25. 

Nude  (for  naked),     r  103. 

Number  (for  p/gce  of  music),  aa  493. 


O- 

O  (for  Oh!).  "  Oh!  is  simply  an  exclamation,  and 
should  be  followed  by  some  mark  of  punctuation, 
usually  an  exclamation  point.  0,  in  addition  to 
being  an  exclamation,  denotes  a  calling  to  or  adju- 
ration." X  133.  "This  distinction,  however,  is 
nearly  or  totally  disregarded  by  most  writers,  even 
the  best,  the  two  forms  being  generally  used  quite 
indiscriminately."     Wb. 

Oaten.    See  Golden. 

Obituary.     See  Divine. 

Objective  (for  subjective),     i  119. 

Obliviate.    d  28. 

Obnoxious  (for  ojfe/m^e).  c  143,  p  144.  "  How 
often  we  hear  some  one  spoken  of  as  'a  most  obnox- 
ious person,'  though  the  true  sense  of  such  a  phrase 
is  equivalent  to  saying  '  he  is  very  servile.'  To  con- 
vey in  accurate  language  the  sense  in  which  the 
■word  is  generally  used,  the  speaker  should  be  care- 
ful to  state  to  what  or  to  whom  a  person  is  obnox- 
ious."   s  55.     But  see  v  270,  vv  92. 

Observe  (for  say),     a  143,  x  131. 

Observation  (for  observance),    v  293.     Eare.   W, 

Odds.     See  Alms. 


O — OF. 


143 


Of  (toTfrom).     "  '  Received  of  John  Smith  fifty 
dollars.'    Usage,  perhaps,  sanctions  this."    r  346- 

Op  (after  verbals).  "According  then  to  Abbott, 
of  would  not  seem  to  be  required  after  verbals, 
whether  they  were  preceded  by  the  definite  article 
or  not  (m  65);  according  to  Dr.  Morris,  it  was 
required  by  sixteenth-century  usage  in  either  case 
(1  173);  according  to  Mr.  Mason  it  is  required  or  not 
according  as  the  verbal  has  more  or  less  of  a  sub- 
stantial or  of  a  verbal  character  (n  64).  Adopting 
this  last  view,"  etc.  c  107,  x  137.  Yet  "there 
seems  to  be  a  difference  between  '  The  meeting  of 
Edwin  and  Arthur  was  long  delayed,'  and  'The 
meeting  Edward  and  Arthur  was  a  great  pleasure  to 
me.'  So  '  The  hearing  of  the  case  is  fixed  for  Mon- 
day' is  right  beyond  all  question,  but  it  is  not  so 
certain  whether  we  should  say,  '  The  hearing  a  lie 
differs  from  the  telling  a  lie.'  or  'the  hearing  of  .  . 
the  telling  o/ a  lie.'  Oneway  of  solving  the  doubt 
is  to  omit  the  definite  article,  another  to  substitute  a 
substantive  for  the  verbal."    c  108,  b  115-6,  d  84. 

Of.  "  As  inserted  between  verbs  and  their  direct 
object  is  very  frequent  in  all  parts  of  the  Union, 
and  arose  originally,  no  doul)t,  from  the  instinctive 
perception  of  the  verb  as  a  noun.  '  The  feeling  of 
it  is  quite  soft,'  'He  expects  to  be  well  paid  for  the 
letting  r/it.'"     tt51'3      See  Treat. 

Of.  "It  is  used  in  designations  of  this  kind  in 
three  different  senses:  1  To  denote  authorship,  as 
t?ie  book  of  Daniel;  2.  To  denote  subject-matter,  as 


144  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

the  first  hook  of  Kings;  3.  As  a  note  of  apposition, 
signifying  winch  is,  or  which  is  called,  as  the  hook  of 
Genesis."  i  118.  '•  While  we  always  say  the  city  of 
Cairo,  not  tJie  city  Cairo,  we  never  say  the  river  of 
Nile,  but  always  the  river  Nik:'  i  119,  d  67.  "  The 
phrase  'all  of  its  provisions '  is  better  and  more  ele- 
gant than  the  phrase  '  all  its  provisions,'  which  our 
carrespondent  would  seem  to  prefer. — N.  Y.  Sun. 

Of  (omitted).  A  gallows  fifty  feet  high,  or  a  gal- 
lows of  fifty  feet  high.  "Clearly  both  of  them 
legitimate."     i  187. 

Of  all  others  (for  of  all).  This  is  of  all  others 
the  best,     x  131,  d  74,  bb  54. 

Ofauy  (for  0/  ««)■     The  largest  of  a^ij^.     x  133. 

Of  (for  in).  "  'Not  one  graduate  of  a  dozen  can 
write  a  grammatical  sentence.'  'Not  one  graduate 
of  a  dozen.'  One  may  be  a  graduate  of  a  college;  he 
can  scarcely  be  a  graduate  of  anything  else,  or  of 
any  number  of  things,  if  he  be  a  collegian  merely. 
The  writer  meant,  not  one  graduate  in  a  dozen,  or 
in  (not  of)  that  proportion." 

Oft"  of  (for  off).    A  yard  off  of  the  cloth,  r  361. 

Offal.  ' '  This  we  restrict  at  present  to  the 
refuse  of  the  butcher's  stall."     p  146,  tt  512. 

Official  (for  officer).     X. 

Officious.  "  An  o^"czo?<s  person  is  now  a  busy, 
uninvited  meddler  in  matters  which  do  not  belong  to 
him,  *  *  The  more  honorable  use  of  officious  now 
only  survives  in  the  distinction   familiar  to  diplo- 


OF — ON.  145 

macy  between  an  official  and  [an]  officious  communi- 
cation,    p  146. 

Often.  Should  be  compared  oftener,  oftenest, 
not  more,  most  often,     x  132. 

Old  (for  ancient).     "  Old  times."    r  228. 

Old  news.  "May  be  placed  in  the  same  class 
with  enjoying  bad  health. "    y  205. 

Older  (for  elder,  of  persons),  r  364,  x  132.  If 
this  distinction  were  universal  it  would  relieve  of 
ambiguity  the  phrase  "oldest  inmate,"  quoted  by 
Alford,  i  25,  which  would  mean  -the  one  who  had 
been  longest  in  the  hospital. 

OM  TCRON  (for  oml'cron).     i  62. 

On.  "Seems  to  be  a  favorite  preposition  with 
Americans;  at  least  it  is  constantly  found  where 
other  prepositions  would  seem  to  be  more  correct 
and  appropriate.  F.  G.  Halleck  already  con- 
demned [?]  this  abuse,  a  result  of  the  prevailing 
carelessness  in  the  use  of  words,  and  quoted  the 
phrases:  'Going  to  Europe  6»7i  a  steamboat;  writing 
a  letter  on  Chambers-street,  and  delivering  it  on 
Fifth  avenue;  being  mentioned  on  the  Times  news- 
paper'; and  actually  speaking  of  Our  Father  which 
art  on  heaven!  Persons  are  constantly  heard  to 
speak  of  friends  whom  they  saw  on  the  street,  and 
having  come  on  the  cars,  while  in  the  South  mem- 
bers are  elected  to  sit  on  the  Legislature.  Hence  the 
common  phrase  of  being  on  time  instead  of  in  time." 
*t  513. 


14(i  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

On  (for  in).  "Mr.  Howells  countenances  thia 
folly  by  writing  '  Tliere  are  a  few  people  to  be  seen 
on  the  street'!  Let  him  and  all  others  who  would 
not  be  at  once  childish  and  pedantic,  say,  in  the 
street,  in  Broadway.  *  *  We  are  in  or  within  a 
limited  surface,  but  on  or  wpon  one  that  is  without 
visible  boundaries.  Thus  a  man  is  in  a  field,  but  on 
a  plain."  a  189,  aa  419,  d  127.  So  of  on  the  cars, 
on  the  steamer,  etc. 

On        \  (for  upon).     "  The  cat  }\.im\jed  upon  the 
On  to  j   chair,  that  is  up  on  the  chair.     She  could 

not  jump  on  to  the  chair,  for  when  she  was  once  on 

the  chair,  she  could  not  jump  to  it."     aa  421,  r  364, 

tt  513,  i  180.     "Wheu  we  say  '  The  cat  jumped  on 

to  the  chair,'  we  mean  that  the  cat  jumped  from 

somewhere  else  to  the  chair,  and  alighted  on  it;  but 

when  we  say,   'The  cat  jumped  on  the  chair,'  we 

mean  that  the  cat  was  on  the  chair  already,  and  that 

while  there  she  jumped  "    bb  45.    No  distinction  in 

the  use  of  on  and  upon,     i  182,  x  132. 

On  hand.    "A  phrase  which  in  America  is  .strange 
ly  abused,   being  applied  to  persons  as  well  as  to 
merchandise.     '  Be  on  hand e&r\y,  and  vote."  "  tt302. 

On  YESTERDAY  (for  yesterday.)     X,  d  127. 

One.  "  The  indefinite  pronoun  should  certainly 
not  be  followed  by  'they'  or  'their,'  but  it  is  a  dis- 
puted point  whetlier  '  he  '  and  '  his  '  (as  in  French) 
or  'one'  and  'one's'  is  the  correcter.  On  the 
whole,  the  authority  of  writers  and  grammarians  is 
in  favor  of  the  latter,     cf. :  "  Wheu  one  suddenly 


ON ONLY    TOO. 


147 


wakes  up  deaf,  one  forgets  for  a  time  that  oiie  has 
already  been  blind.'  "Stigand.    c  155,  i  226,  x  133. 

"  What  one  has  done  when  one  was  young, 
One  ne'er  will  do  again ; 
In  former  days  one  went  by  coach. 
But  now  one  goes  by  truin." 

One  half  (for  a  half),     d  97. 

One  word  (for  what  may  occupy  half  an  hour), 
dl40. 

ONES.  "Two  ones?"  r  366,  d  27.  Allowed  by 
Wb. 

Only.  "If  we  were  to  ask  the  question,  'Had 
you  only  the  children  with  you?',  a  person  south  of 
the  Tweed  would  answer  no,  and  a  person  north  of 
the  Tweed  2^^s,  both  meaning  the  same  thing,  viz., 
that  only  the  children  were  there.  *  *  The  account 
to  be  given  of  this  seems  to  be  that  only  is  none  but: 
'  Had  you  none  but  the  children  with  you?'  and  the 
answer  is  None  affirming  the  question.  So  that  the 
negative  form  naturally  occurs  to  the  mind  in  fram- 
ing its  answer,  and  none  becomes  no.  AVhereas  in 
the  other  case  this  form  does  not  occur  to  the  mind, 
but  simply  having  to  affirm  the  matter  inquired  of, 
viz.,  the  having  only  the  children:  and  the  answer 
is  Even  so,  or  yes. "     i  84. 

More  frequently  misplaced  than  any  other  word. 
X  134. 

Only  too  (superfluous).  "His  services  were  only 
too  gladly  accepted."  Why  only  too?  There  is  no 
sense  in  this  attempt  to  intensify  the  force  of  gladly 
by  a  negative  modifier.     Too  glad,  too  good,  too  will- 


148  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

ing  (phrases  often  heard   and  read),   are  abortions 
when  carefully  analyzed." — N.  C.  Advocate. 

Open  up.     d  108,  i  183,  bb  50. 

Or  (for  and),     d  141. 

Or  (for  no7\  after  tieitlier).  a  262.  (After  not, 
nothing,  or  any  form  of  negative  affirmation),  d  141. 

Orate,  a  205,  d  21.  Defended,  vv  76.  Not 
given  by  W.  or  Wb. 

Originate.     "Landor  makes    Dr.  Johnson  say: 
'  Scholars  will  always  say  the  measure  originated 
from  him.'      Nevertheless  scholars  already  have  in 
such  a  case  often  said  v;ith."     v  298. 

Orthographt.  See  Caligraphy.  c  13,  r  358, 
y  204. 

Ortliopoedic  (for  art/iopodic).  y  53.  W  and 
Wb.  give  neither  form. 

Osculate  (for  kiKs).  "An  utterly  unwarrantable 
vulgarism."     tt  514. 

Osteology  must  not  be  limited  to  human  bones. 
c  41. 

Other.  "I  must  confess  I  saw  no  other  disap- 
pointed individual  [person]  leaving  the  cook-shop 
except  myself  ." — G.  M.  Barnes,     c  123. 

"  Monthly  and  Weekly  Payments. 

'■  The  longest  time  and  easiest  terms  given  by  any 
other  house  in  the  city." — Chatham  St.  sif/7i.  aa  379. 

Ought  (for  sJiotdd).  "  Ought  is  the  stronger  term. 
What  we  o^ight  to  do,  we  are  morally  bound  to  do." 


OPEN    UP OWN    TO. 


149 


X  136.  ''Ought  implies  the  obligation  of  duty;^ 
should,  the  obligation  of  custom."     W. 

"Our  Mr.  So  and  So."    aa  493. 

Ov'T%U)^  {tor  except).  ''Outside  the  Secretary  of 
War,  nobody  knew."     tt  514. 

Ovation.     X. 

Over  and  above  (for  more  than).     X. 

Over  liis  signature  (for  under  his  signature). 
X  177,  X,  d  57.  "This  unwarrantable  innovation." 
—Pickering.     Quoted  by  W.  and  Wb. 

Overly,     x  130.     Rare.     W. 

^'^       \  for  confess),     d  138. 
Own  to  5  -^     ' 


PAmFJJL  [for laborious),  pp.261.  Obsolete.  Wb. 

Pains.     See  Alms,    n  64. 

Palatial.  "  A  favorite  term  with  grandiloquent 
speakers."    tt  514. 

Palliate.  "At  this  clay  to  extenuate  a  fault 
through  the  setting  out  of  whatever  will  best  serve 
to  diminish  the  estimate  of  its  gravity;  and  does  not 
imply  any  endeavor  wholly  to  deny  it;  nay,  implies 
rather  a  certain  recognition  and  admission  of  the 
fault  itself."    p  148. 

Pamper  (for  pander),     c  42. 
Panacea  "means  by  itself  a  universal  remedy, 
and  must  not  have  universal cowp\e6.  with  it."  a  212. 

Pantaloons.  "We  find  a  writer  in  the  Hour 
speaking  of  'pantaloons; '  and  we  beg  to  inform  the 
editor  of  that  journal  that  no  such  thing  is  known 
to  the  English  language.  The  garment  in  question 
is  properly  called  trousers.  It  is  a  word  of  Italian 
origin,  and  was  originally  applied  to  the  peculiar 
hose  worn  by  the  pantalone  or  clown  in  a  panto- 
mime. At  any  rate,  it  is  not  a  word  of  good  repute 
in  the  English  language." — N.  Y.  Sun. 

Pants.     See  Gent,     tt  515. 

Paper  (for  newspaper),     d  145. 


PAINFUL PARTIALLY.  151 

Paradox.  "A  i^aradox  is  a  seeming  absurdity, 
and  to  say  that  '  such  and  such  a  thing  seems  a  para- 
dox,' is  to  be  guilty  of  the  tautology  that  it  seems  a 
seeming  absurdity.'  It  reminds  one  of  the  Irishman's 
remark,  '  My  pig  is  not  so  heavy  as  I  expected,  and 
I  never  thought  it  would  be.'  "     c  43. 

Parag-raplier  (for  paragi-aphisf).     a  215. 

Paralyse.     Sea  Analyse. 

Parapheknalia  (for  equipment),  r  361,  x  137, 
d  54. 

Pardon  (for  forgiveness)     e,  I  243. 

Parlor  (for  drawing  room).  "  In  England,  people 
who  have  a  drawing-room  no  longer  call  it  a  parlor, 
as  they  called  it  of  old,  and  till  recently."  v  247, 
vv48,  x  137,  aa503. 

Partake  of  (for  eat),  a  143,  c  43,  r  336,  tt  515, 
i  248,  V  137. 

Partially  {for  partly).  "Partially,  the  adverb 
of  partial,  means  with  unjust  or  unreasonable  bias. 
A  view  cannot  be  both  correct  and  partial.  When 
anything  is  done  in  part,  it  is  partly,  not  partially, 
done."  a  143.  x  137,  X.  But  "Partially,  for  not 
totally,  only  in  part,  was  in  some  connections  good 
English  to  Sir  Thomas  Brown;  and  from  the  edu- 
cated sense  of  euphony  which  distinguishes  modern 
ears  it  has  been  well  nigh  completely  resuscitated. 
There  are  cases,  in  which  partly,  if  substituted  for 
it.  would  affect  many  persons  of  nice  perceptions 
much  after  the  manner  of  a  wrong  note  in  music, 


152  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

e.  g.  '  Shakspere  did  perfectly  what  Aeschylus  did 
partially.'' — Ruskin."    v  191. 

Particle  (for  at  all).  As  "not  a  particle,''  for 
"uot  ««  «Z;,"  or  (colloquially)  "not  a  bit."   aa  414. 

Parts  (for  talents),     v  293. 

Party  (for  person),  a  148,  v  81,  i  246,  x  138,  X» 
"  Mr.  G.  Lewes  told  me  of  au  undertaker  who  spoke 
of  a  corpse  as  '  the  party  in  the  next  room.'  "  c  33, 
r  348.  "  This  use  of  the  word  happened  to  strike 
more  particularly  the  fancy  of  the  vulgar;  and  the 
consequence  has  been  that  the  polite  have  chosen  to 
leave  it  in  their  undisputed  possession."  "  Wanted: 
a  party  to  teach  a  young  man  dancing  privately." 
1247. 

Pass  (for  Ziftftd).     "Pass  a  dish."    d  132. 

Passing  (for  more  than).  "  Passing  a  couple  of 
months."     v  248. 

Past  two  weeks  (for  last  two  weeks).     X. 

Patience  (as  plural),    n  64. 

Patience's.  "  We  should  say  '  for  patience'  sake,' 
meaning 'for  the  sake  of  patience.'  If  we  were 
speaking  of  a  person  named  Patience,  we  should  say 
'  Patience's  father  is  here.'  "     i  26. 

Patron  (for  customer;  in  education,  for  parent). 
X  138,  a  144. 

Patronage  (for  custom),     x  138. 

Peas  (for  iiease).  g  34.  "Peas  is  used  when 
number  is  referred  to;  pease,  when  species  or  quan- 
tity is  denoted."     W. 


PABTIOLE PERIOD.  153 

Peculiarly  (for  exceedingly),     d  62. 

Pell-mell  (of  the  action  of  an  individual).  "  '  I 
rushed  pell-mell  out  of  the  theatre.'  The  writer 
might  as  well  have  said  that  he  rushed  out  promis- 
cuously, or  marched  out  by  platoons."  a  145,  x  139, 
g33. 

Pen  (for  authorship),     d  73.     "  Often  used  figura- 
tively for  one  who  uses  a  pen."     Wb. 
Pensive  (for  thoughtful),     f  239. 

Penury.  This  expresses  now  no  more  than  the 
objective  fact  of  extreme  poverty ;  an  ethical  subject- 
ive meaning  not  lying  in  it,  as  would  sometimes  of 
old.  This  is  retained  now  only  in  penurious,  penu- 
riousness."    p  153. 

People  (for  j^^^^ons).  "Many  people  think  so." 
r  36.  "I  own  I  cannot  find  that  this  distinction  is 
entirely  borne  out."    1236. 

Per  (for  a).     Ten  cents  per  quart,     x  139. 

Perform  (for  play  on  the  piano),     x  139. 

Period.  "  The  word  period,  again,  except  in 
scientific  use,  is  one  which  has  lost  all  immediate 
connection  with  its  radical  and  original  sense.  As 
referred  to  time  we  may  say  (and  do  say  very  often), 
English  literature  may  be  clas.sed  under  three  peri 
ods:  from  Chaucer  to  the  Reformation  (  say  1350  to 
1520,  170  years);  from  the  Reformation  to  Milton 
(say  1520  to  1660.  140  years);  and  from  Milton's 
time  to  ours  (say  200  years):  and  the  use  of  this 
expression,  which  the  necessities  of  our  language 


154  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

has  rendered  universal,  is  still  inaccurate:  while  if 
we  speak  of  a  number  of  feriodi  of  equal  length, 
such  as  centuries,  years,  months,  weeks,  we  shall 
be  using  the  word  with  perfect  accuracy.  For  we 
take  it  metaphorically  from  its  astronomical  use, 
which  expresses  the  recurring  and  equal  measures 
of  the  time  taken  by  a  heavenly  body  to  complete 
its  orbits  [orbit] ;  and  our  substantive  and  adjective 
'periodical  still  retains  the  accurate  astronomical  idea 
which  the  word  suggests.  But  the  use  of  the  word 
'period  in  the  sense  of  punctuation  is  still  more 
involved.  When  a  planet  has  completed  an  observed 
circuit  it  does  not  cease  to  revolve,  but  nevertheless 
the  idea  of  completion  has  so  far  and  so  generally 
suggested  the  idea  of  cessation,  that  we  actually 
have  taken  the  word  implying  the  planet's  entire 
circuit  to  express  our  notion  of  its  conclusion  only, 
and  close  a  sentence  with  a  full  stop  under  the  name 
of  &  period.  The  establishment  of  this  sen.se,  again, 
has  given  us  another  metaphor,  and  from  the  use  of 
di period  or  full  stop  in  writing,  we  have  learned,  in 
the  sense  of  terminating  or  checking  any  course  of 
proceeding,  to  speak  of  putting  a  period  or  stop  to 
it.  We  may  further  note  in  this  case  (as  may  be 
noted  also  in  numberless  others)  how  by  some 
unconscious  instinct  of  accuracy,  when  the  original 
sense  of  a  word  has  become  lost  in  its  metaphorical 
one,  the  words  used  in  connection  with  it  are  still 
suited  to  the  primitive  though  forgotten  idea:  for 
the  word  period  implies  a  circuit,  a  course  round  a 
centre,  and  to  express  smoothness  and  accuracy  of 


PERIODICALS PERSON.  155 

a  writer's  sentoncee   we  constantly  speak  of    his 
periods  hein^  yfeW  rounded."    s  84. 

Periodicals.  "Frequent  but  unwarranted,  since 
the  word  is  an  adjective,  not  a  noun."  tt  516,  v  169. 

Permeate  (for  indoctrinate),     c  43. 
Perpetually  (for  continually),     x  139. 

Person.  Originally  a  mask,  aa  386.  8o  parson, 
r297,  808,  y  31,  232.  Blackley  calls  this  "a  ridic- 
ulous error,"  s  68,  and  is  ridiculed  for  it  by  Hall, 
vv  27.  "  The  present  meaning  of  the  word  jyerson 
is  in  its  widest  and  most  accepted  sense  synonymous 
with  human  individual.  It  can  be  applied  with 
equal  accuracy  to  man,  woman,  or  child  of  any 
rank,  class,  or  quality;  in  its  plain  form  it  is  more 
general  than  mail,  since  it  can  be  applied  to  mem- 
bers of  a  different  sex  and  a  different  age  of  the 
human  race  than  [?]  the  word  man  can  be;  and  it  is 
more  particular  thuu  individual,  since  that  term  may 
be  accurately  applied  not  only  to  members  of  the 
human  race,  but  to  those  of  any  class  of  animals, 
and  any  class  of  things.  Again,  the  word  can  be 
used  to  signify  contempt;  and  it  may  be  used  to 
express  disgust,  as  in  the  words,  '  So  and  so  is  a 
most  objectionable  ^ersoft.'  Again,  it  may  express 
distinction  between  classes,  as  when  we  are  unwil- 
ling to  speak  of  a  milliner  or  a  barmaid  as  a  young 
lady  (though,  indeed,  American  notions  would  scout 
such  hesitation)  and  we  regard  the  class  as  suffi- 
ciently expressed  by  speaking  of  '  the  young  person.' 
In  this  use,  by  the  way,  the  word  implies  a  female, 


156  VERBAL    PITFALI-S. 

since  the  same  shade  of  difference  does  not  need 
expression  in  talking  of  our  own  clumsier  and 
coarser  sex,  which  may  be  designated  by  so  many 
familiar  correlatives,  which  begin  in  man,  and  pass 
through  lad  and  felloic  down  to  the  more  vu'gar  but 
equally  expressive  chap.  So  again  the  word  person 
may  be  used  as  a  matter  of  dignity,  as  we  say,  'A 
person  of  quality,  a  person  of  importance,'  where  we 
do  not  say,  '  A  man  (or  a  woman)  of  quality.'  "  s  65. 

Personalty  (for  apparel),     r  363,  x  140. 

Perspicuity  (for  perspicacity),     c  60. 

Perspiration  (for  sweat).  Though  James  Russell 
Lowell  declares  that  this  use  is  vulgar,  we  fancy 
there  are  few  people  who  do  not  prefer  to  use  the 
longer  word.  It  is  an  old  distinction  that  a  horse 
sweats,  a  man  perspires,  and  a  woman  glows.  See 
Transpire.  A  heated  lover  who  began  a  letter  to 
his  inamorata,  "Thou  sweatest,"  found  her  no  longer 
sweet  to  him. 

Persuade  (for  advise).  "  Can  stand  for  advise 
when  the  persuasion  has  carried  conmction."  c  43. 
See  g  35. 

Persuasion.  "  Recently  sadly  perverted  from 
its  legitimate  purpose;  as,  '  passengers  of  the  female 
persuasion.'  "    tt  623,  i  35. 

Peruse  (for  read,  scan).  ' '  Much  affected  by 
unrefined  persons,  who  invariably  prefer  a  strange 
but  high-sounding  word  to  the  more  familiar  expres- 
sion."    tt  517. 


PERSONALTY PLAY  ACTOR.      157 

Petroleum  (for  rock-oil).  "  Perfectly  legitimate, 
but  one  of  a  class  that  is  doing  injury  to  the  lan- 
guage."    a  215. 

Pharoali  (for  Pharaoh),     i  38. 

Phenomenon.  "  The  Only  True  Living  Piienom- 
enon."    aa  374. 

PHOTOGRA.PHER  {for  photographist)  a  215.  But 
see  vv  59.     Allowed  by  W. 

Physicist.  "Unlovely,  irregular,  ambiguous." 
aa  470.  "A  very  late  and  very  useful  neotorism." 
V  308. 

Pigmy  (for  pygmy),  r  317.  "The  y  is  gone,  and 
we  must  submit."    y  210. 

Pile  {U-yr  amount).  "Owed  me  quite  a  pile."  tt  304. 

(for  entire  resources).     "Beyond  my  pile.'' 

tt  304. 

Pitcher.  "  Used  for  7W51',  is  frequently  adduced 
by  Englishmen  as  a  test-word  by  which  Americans 
are  recognized  abroad."     a  84,  tt  518 

Placate,     d  96. 

Plastic  (for  suitable  to  be  nsed  in  moulding,  as 
plastic  clay),     c  43. 

Platitiidiiioiis.  "To  disburthen  one's  self  of 
a  sense  of  contempt,  a  robust  full-bodied  detona- 
tion, like,  for  instance,  platitudinous,  is  unquestion- 
ably very  much  more  serviceable  than  any  evanes- 
cing squib  of  one  or  two  syllables."    v  310. 

Play-actor  (for  actor),     tt  519. 


158  vp:rbal  pitfalls. 

Plead  (for  pleaded),  r  852,  tt  519,  x  141,  d  112. 
"  Verba  derived  from  Latin  or  any  foreign  language 
cannot  have  the  strong  inflection  of  Saxon  verbs." — 
Blackwood,  Oct.  1867.  "  Sometimes  improperly  used 
for  imp.  and  pp."     Wb. 

"  Please  FIND  ENCLOSED."    aa  492. 

Plenty  (for  many,  enough,  in  numbers),    aa  423. 

{for  plentiful).    Make  money  plenty,   r  343, 

V  248,  X  141. 

Pluck.  Did  not  make  its  way  into  American 
speech,  at  least,  till  Tom  Brown's  School  Bays  made 
the  term  familiar  here.  The  American  people  seem 
to  have  been  reluctant  to  accept  so  vile  a  word, 
denoting  the  most  worthless  part  of  an  animal's 
entrails,  as  the  representative  of  what  their  fathers 
had  called  courage  or  heartiness,  from  the  cor,  the 
heart  of  a  man."    tt  550. 

'Plunder  {for  baggage).  tt520.  "Southern  and 
Western  U.  S."     Wb. 

Poetess.     See  Authoress. 

Poignancy.     See  Acuteness. 

Policy  "Policy  (state  craft)  is  rightly  spelled,  but 
policies  of  insurance  ought  to  have  the  II,  the  word 
being  derived  from  polliceor,  to  promise  or  assure." 
r318. 

Polite.  "  Between  polite  and  polished  this  mnch 
of  difference  has  now  grown  up  and  established 
itself,  that  polite  is  always  employed  in  a  secondary 
and  tropical  sense,  having  reference  to  the  polish  of 


PLEAD POSSESSIVES.  159 

the  mind,  while  it  is  free  to  use  polished  in  the  literal 
and  figurative  sense  [senses]  alike."  p  159,  r  290,. 
pp  274. 

(for  kind).     To  write  "  I  accept  your  2yolite 

invitation."  suggests  that  the  person  might  have 
written  an  impolite  one,  and  that  you  can  give  him 
instruction  as  to  whether  he  follows  the  usages  of 
society,     x  142. 

Political  CAPITAL.  "  A  term  purely  American 
in  its  origin,  though  long  since  transplanted  to  Eng- 
land, and  naturalized  there  in  the  political  slang 
dictionary."    tt  266. 

Pond  "Has  taken  the  place  of  the  English 
mere,  which  is' almost  unknown  in  the  United 
States."     tt522. 

Ponder.  "Best  employed  as  a  transitive  verb, 
the  matter  weighed  or  deliberated  being  put  in  the 
objective  case  without  a  preposition.  Thus  Milton 
has  'ponders  all  events.'  "    c  44. 

Polling,     a  333. 

Popular  (for  <7(9(9rf).  aa  362,  371.  Fov  conceited, 
tt  522. 

Portion  (for  part).  "  A  portion  is  a  part  set  aside 
for  a  special  purpose,  or  to  be  considered  by  itself." 
a  146,  X  142,  X.  "  Part  is  generic,  having  a  simple 
reference  to  some  whole.  Portion  has  the  additional 
idea  of  being  subtracted  from  the  whole."     Wb. 

PossESSiVES  (in  an  objective  use),     aa  422. 
(with  verbals?),     i  231,  x  33. 


160  VERBAL     PITFALLS. 
(as  to  their  form),     v  355. 


Posted  (for  informed),  tt  312,  x  143,  X,  a  129. 
"Colloquial,  U.  S."     Wb. 

Posthumous.  "  'The  common  fate  of  posthu- 
mous compositions."— Johnson.  How  can  &  compo- 
sition date  after  its  author's  death?"     v  203. 

Poultryist.    aa  471. 

Practice.  "  A  person  was  once  asked  whether 
a  certain  lawyer  had  got  rich  by  his  practice.  '  No,' 
was  the  reply,  '  but  by  his  practices.'  "   r  325,  w  311. 

Pkactitioner.     a  216,  401. 

Prayerfully  (for  devoutly  join),  tt  240.  See 
also  V  130. 

Pkecious.     See  Blessed. 

Predicate  (for  predict,  or  say).  "  Action  may  be 
predicated  of  a  body  or  an  individual;  but  action  by 
a  body  upon  circumstances  or  statements,  is  simple 
absurdity."  a  147,  d  48,  c  45,  aa  391,  r  349,  tt  523, 
i  233,  X  143. 

Predict  {iox  predicate).  "A  rarer  blunder."  c  45. 

(of  past  events),     d  96. 

Prefer.  "  '  I  prefer  to  walk  tlian  to  ride,'  is  as 
grammatically  incorrect  as  '1  prefer  to  walk  to  to 
ride,'  is  inharmonious.  Say,  'I  prefer  walking  to 
riding,'  or  '  I  would  rather  walk  than  ride."    c  125. 

Pre.judiced  (for  prepossessed  in  his  favor).  We 
are  prejudiced  against  one.  x  143,pppl04,  vl98,  201. 

Preposterous.  "Even  with  classic  authors  often 


POSTED — PROGRESS.  161 

lost  its  old  vigorous  sense  of  '  hindmost  first '  in  the 
weaker  meaning  of  '  absurd,  unreasonable."  c  46. 
"A  word  nearly  or  quite  unserviceable  now,  being 
merely  an  ungraceful  and  slipshod  synonym  for 
absurd."    p  163. 

PRESENT  (for  introduce).  "  We  present  foreign 
ministers  to  the  President;  we  introduce  *  *  our 
friends  to  each  other."    aa  147.     See  Introduce. 

Presidential  (for  presideiitaJ).  a  217.  But  see 
vv  63.     Presidental  is  not  given  by  W.  or  Wb. 

Presumptive  (for  presumptuous).  "  Self-reliant, 
he  was  not  pi'esmnptive."    c  63,  x  146.     Rare.    Wb. 

Preventative  (for  preventive).  "  An  impossible 
form  "  c  63.  a  22£,  r  357,  x  146,  d  19.  "Incorrectly 
used  ioT preventive."    W.,  Wb. 

Previous  (for  previously).  "Previous  to  my 
going."    r  352.  x  146,  z  122. 

Privilege  (for  right).  See  Carlyle's  Past  and 
Present,  iv.,  i.  c  47. 

Proceed  (for  go),     a  129. 

Procure  (for  get),     x  146. 

Productibility.    v  181. 

Program.    "  So  I  spell  purposely."  vv  46,  y  200. 

Progress,  "the  verb  neuter,  long  erroneously 
•called  an  Americanism,  has  shifted  its  accent  in 
becoming  modern  English.  That  we  should  have  a 
verb  corresponding  to  the  substantive  progress  is  cer- 
tainly desirable."  d  286,  i  114.  "Dean  Alford  in 
1864,  and  Mr.  E.  S.  Gould  in  1867,  pointed  out  that 


162  VERB,VL   PITFALLS. 

progress  had  been  thus  employed  by  Shakspere,  Mi!- 
ton,  and  Cibber;  though  the  Dean  seems  still  to 
demur  to  the  modern  accentuation,  progress,  and  to 
the  formation  of  a  verb  ou  a  nouQ.  But  is  not  the 
verb  formed  on  the  past  participle  of  progredior,  just 
as  digress  is  from  digredior,  or  transgress  from  trans- 
gi-edior  ?  whWe  H.S  to  the  iiccent  v^^ould  Dean  Alford 
have  said  '  to  object,'  '  to  project,'  or  '  to  rebel  ?  '  Ety- 
mologically  progress  is  unimpeachable;  while  retro- 
grade,  the  verb,  is  at  least  a  corrector  formation  than 
retrograde,  the  adjective,  which  was  justly  derided 
in  Jonson's  Poetaster.  *  *  At  the  same  time  writers 
may  with  advantage  ask  themselves,  before  they 
employ  these  verbs,  whether  advance,  proceed,  or 
go  forward  might  not  be  substituted  for  progress;  go- 
backward  or  decline  for  retrograde."  c  49.'  tt  524, 
y  182.  V  286.  X.     See  d  99. 

Prolific  (for  frequent),     c  50. 

Promiscuously  (for  casually),     y  39. 

"    Promise   (for  assure).     I    promise  you   I    was- 
astonished.     x  146,  d  117. 

Prompt.  "  Usually  contains  somewhat  of  re- 
proach. We  praise  the  girl  that  is  ready  with  her 
lesson,  and  detest  a  prompt  miss  who  keeps  an 
answer  or  excuse  at  her  fingers  ends."    e  II.,  199. 

Proof  (for  evidence).  Proof  is  the  result  of  evi- 
dence.    X  150. 

Property.    \      "All  propriety  is  now  mental  or 
Propriety,  f  moral;    where   material   things  are 


PROLIFIC PUT    UP    WITH.  163 

concerned,  property  is  the  word  which  we  use."  p 
168,  r301. 

PROPOSE  {tor  purpose),  aa  396,  x  150,  "Recent. "^ 
Wb. 

Proposition  (for  proposal).  "  A  proposal  is  some' 
thing  offered  to  be  done;  a  proposition  is  something 
submitted  to  one's  consideration."   r  352,  x  151. 

Prosaist.  "  It  is  a  word  which  we  shall  do  well 
to  encourage."     v  308. 

Proven  (for  proved),  a  220,  r  352,  tl  524,  x  151, 
"A  Scotticism."     Wb.,  W. 

Providing  (for  provided).  You  may  go,  providing 
you  will  be  back  in  time.       x  151. 

Prox.  (for  next  month),     a  169. 

Pulse  (as  plural),     n  64, 

Pupil.    See  Scholar. 

Purchase  (for  buy),     x  167. 

Put.     For  various  slang  expressions,  see  tt  625. 

Put  up  with.    V  280. 


Q- 

Quaint.  "In  quaint  there  lies  always  now  the 
notion  of  a  certain  curiosity  and  oddness,  however 
these  may  be  subordinated  to  ends  of  beauty  and 
grace,  and  indeed  may  themselves  be  made  to  con- 
tribute to  these  ends."     p  173. 

Quality.  "In  French  qualite  has  come  to  bear 
the  restricted  meaning  of  'good  qualities,'  and  mod- 
ern Euglish  writers  are  aping  this  undesirable  restric- 
tion. Another  restrictive  use,  that  of  quality  for 
'  high  estate, '  is  rarer  now  than  it  was  a  century  ago. 
Villagers  still  speak  of  their  superiors  as  •  the  qual- 
ity,' but  a  modern  novelist  would  hardly  write:  'She 
has  been  so  obliging  as  to  introduce  my  aunt  and  me 
to  some  of  her  particular  friends  of  quality.'" — 
Smollett,     c  50 

Quantity  (for  number).  A  quantity  of  books,  r 
355,  X  167,  y  205. 

Quarantine,     ppp  195,  f  144. 

Quarter  to  ten  (for  quarter  of  ten),     x  131. 

Queer.  "  Has  always  more  or  less  of  the  ludi- 
crous in  it,  while  it  never  serves  to  express — as  it 
does  in  Eoglish  [England]— the  sensation  of  sudden 
illness  or  serious  injury."     tt  527. 

Querulity.    s  183. 


QUAINT QUITE.  165 

Querulous.  ."  Means  complaining,  and  not  ques- 
tioning."   g37. 

Quit  (for  cease),     x  167. 

Quite.  "  Quite  means  completely,  entirely,  in  a 
finished  manner.  *  *  Therefore  the  common  phrase, 
miscalled  an  Americanism,  quite  a  number,  is  unjus- 
tifiable." a  147,  tt  528.  "May  qualify  an  adjec- 
tive, but  not  a  noun."     x  167. 

"  '  Quite  a  severe  article;  and  quite  unnecessarily 
so,  I  should  say.  The  use  of  quite  is  a  peculiarity 
which  I  quite  remarked  myself;  but  I  think  you 
have  quite  a  right  to  use  it,  as  a  substitute,  if  you 
please,  for  our  less  exact  very;  and,  in  colloquial 
writing,  no  one  ought  to  object.'  Clough.  The  uses 
of  quite  which  he  exemplifies  have  been  English  for 
considerably  upwards  of  a  hundred  years.  *  *  Quiet 
often  holds  in  signification  a  place  intermediate 
between  altogether  and  somewhat.  The  French  assez 
and  the  Italian  assai  have  a  similar  acceptation." 
v51. 


Railroad  (for  railway),     a  148,  tt  355. 

Raindeer  (for  reindeer),     s  191,  y  300. 

Rai.se  (for  bring  up,  educate),  y  180.  "  A  pecu- 
liarity of  the  Southera  States."     Wb. 

(for  increase  the  rent),  x  168.  "Aland- 
lord  notitied  his  tenaat  that  he  should  rawehis  rent. 
'Thank  you,'  was  the  reply,  '  I  find  it  very  hard  to 
raine  it  myself.'  "     r  36(3. 

(for  rise),     n  79.     "  The  price  of  flour  is 

raising.''    g  38. 

Rake.  "  In  England,  to  rake  up  the  fire  means 
to  cover  it  with  ashes;  here  we  u.se  to  rake  up  in  the 
sense  of  discovering,  bringing  to  light."     tt  530. 

liau  (for  run).    I  .should  have  ran.     u  81. 

RARE.  "In  the  sense  of  underdone,  is  not  con- 
sidered in  good  taste  now,  in  England."  tt  530,  y  182. 
"A  use  of  the  word  'rare'  peculiar  to  America  is 
that  so  frequently  heard  at  hotel  dinner  tables. 
When  Professor  Freeman  was  asked  by  a  Boston 
waiter  whether  he  would  have  his  roast  beef  '  rare ' 
or  well  done,  the  learned  historian  was  baffled.  His 
countrymen  at  home  have  no  occasion  for  a  word  to 
distinguish  between  two  degrees  of  roasting.     Their 


RAILROAD READING.  16  Y 

'  well  done  '  is  our  '  rare,' and  the  only  other  epithet 
known  to  them  as  applicable  to  a  piece  of  roast 
meat  is  'spoiled.'  "~N.  C.  Advocate.  "This  word  is 
in  common  use  in  the  United  States,  but  is  not,  at 
present,  in  good  use  in  England."     Wl). 

Rarely  (for  7'are).     It  is  rarely  that  I  do  this. 
X  168. 

(for  exceedingly).     "  A  Syracuse  newspaper 


reporter — probably  a  college  student — closed  his 
account  of  a  students'  class  supper  with  the  remark 
that  'the  evening  was  rarely  enjoyable.'  A  true 
reading  of  this  statement  would  not  be  complimen- 
tary to  the  host;  for  the  adverb  '  rarely '  means  '  sel- 
dom' instead  of  "in  a  high  degree,'  There  .is, 
indeed,  faint  authority  for  giving  to  this  word  the 
qualifying  signification  (see  dictionary)  but  it  must 
in  that  case,  attach  directly  to  the  verb  of  action, 
and  not  modify  another  qualifier.  Thus:  '  he  played 
the  flute  rarely  '  might,  by  sufferance,  be  understood 
to  mean  that  '  he  played  it  finely,'  though  the  sense 
would  have  to  be  agreed  upon  beforehand,  otherwi,se 
the  understanding  wouki  be  that  '  he  rarely  (seldom) 
played.'  " — N.  G.  Advocate. 

Ratiocinate,     a  141. 

Readiuj»' (for  rendering,  which  see).  ''By  the 
way,  that  word  Reading,  in  its  critical  use,  always 
charms  me.  An  actresses's  Reading  of  a  chamber- 
maid, a  dancer's  Reading  of  a  hornpipe,  a  singer's 
Reading  of  a  song,  a  marine  painter's  Reading  of  the 
sea,  the  kettle-drummer's  Reading  of  an  instrumen- 


168  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

tal  passage,  are  phrases  ever  youihful  junl  elelight- 
fxiV— Dickens,  c  51.  "  But  reading  music  with  an 
instrument  or  even  with  the  voice  is  a  verj'  different 
matter."    aa  106. 

Real  (for  very).     Real  nice,     x  168. 

Real  Estate  (for  la7id).     a  150. 

Receive  (without  an  object).  "Sometimes  used 
elliptically."     Wb. 

Keckou  (for  conjecture,  conclude),  tt  530.  "  Pro- 
vincial and  vulgar."     Wb. 

Recollect  Cor  remember).  "  When  we  do  not 
remember  what  we  wish  to  speak  of.  we  try  to 
re-collect  it."  a  150.  "That  which  lies  in  our 
memory  at  hand,  ready  for  use  at  any  moment,  we 
remember;  but  we  also  really  do  remember  much 
that  does  not  lie  at  hand,  and  this  we  try  to  recollect, 
that  is,  to  recollect.  Therefore  the  expression,  I 
don't  remember,  but  I  will  try  to  recollect,  is  not  only 
correct,  ,but  it  sets  forth  a  condition  of  mind 
expressible  in  no  other  way."    aa  414. 

Recoiniueud  (for  invite),     r  343,  x  168. 

Recompense  (for  compensate),     v  257. 
RECUPERATE  (for  recover),     a  129.     "Can  in 
no  sense  be  said  to  belong  to  our  language."    y  181. 
Not  given  by  Wb.     Rare.     W. 

Redaction.  "  A  real  acquisition  to  our  language. 
To  work  up  literary  matter  and  give  it  a  presentable 
form  is  neither  compiling  nor  editing  nor  resetting; 
and  the  action  performed  on  it  is  exactly  expressed 
by  redaction.''    v  310. 


REAL — RELIABLE.  1^9 

Kedolent  (for  i-  dicative),     c  51. 

Referrible  (for  referable),     y  213. 

Regalia  (for  badges).  '■  Applicable  ouly  to  em- 
blems of  royalty."    col. 

REGRET  (for  regret  .the  want  of).  "  I  am  per- 
suaded that  110  person  of  honor  or  delicacy  will 
regret  the  amusement  which  might  perhaps  have 
been  purchased  by  treachery  to  the  dead.  "—Letters 
of  Sydney  Smith,    c  55. 

Rehabilitate  (for  clothe),    r  103,  y  105,  v  299. 

Relation  (for  relative). 

Reliable  (for  trusticorthy).  a  230,  tt  531,  i  253, 
X  168,  X.     See  Desirability. 

"The  real  difference  between  reliable  and  trust- 
worthy is  that  the  former  applies  more  properly  to 
things,  such  as  news,  information,  &c.,  and  the  lat- 
ter to  persons.  But  we  should  resist  with  all  our 
might  the  introduction  of  reliability."    y  194. 

"For  choice  and  pith  of  language  he  belongs  to  a 
better  age  than  ours,  and  might  rub  shoulders  with 
Fuller  and  Browne,  though  he  does  use  that  abom- 
inable word  reliable." — J.  B.  Lowell,  on  Emerson. 
Mr.  Hall's  book  of  238  pages  (dd)  shows  that  the 
word  is  countenanced  by  a  host  of  writers,  yet  the 
author  says  he  has  himself  used  the  word  but  once 
in  eight  thousand  printed  pages,  c  52.  Mr.  Marsh 
condemns  it  (w  135)  twenty  three  pages  after  having 
himself  used  it  (w  112).  See  d  28.  "  It  is  ill  formed, 
and  it  cannot  properly  have  the  signification  in 
which  it  is  always  used."   W.    "  A  most  convenient 


170  A^ERBAL    PITFALLS. 

substitute  for  the  phrase  to  be  relied  upon,  and  a  use- 
ful syuonym  for  trustioortliy."    Wb. 

RELIGION  (for  cult),     v  172. 

Religion  {for piety).  "There  are  many  religions; 
there  is  but  one  piety."  a  151,  r  250,  tt  231.  See  also 
i  238,  ppp  33,  pp  357. 

Remains.  "  '  Here  lies  the  remains  of  '  has  been 
justified  [defended]  on  the  ground  that  remains  is 
equivalent  to  '  remainder,'  there  being  no  such  sin- 
gular noun  as  a  remain.  But  the  defence  is  unques- 
tionably wrong.  The  word  remains  is,  and  is 
intended  to  be,  plural,  in  signification  as  well  as  in 
form."    i  39. 

Remit  (for  send,  as  of  money),     a  151. 

Remorse.  "  There  is  nothing  which  is  followed 
in  natures  not  absolutely  devilish  with  so  swift  a 
revulsion  of  mind  as  acts  of  cruelty.  Nowhere  [else] 
does  the  conscience  so  quickly  remord  {bite  back],  if 
one  may  use  the  word,  the  guilty  actor,  as  in  and 
after  these;  and  thus  remorse,  which  is  the  penitence 
of  the  natural  man,  the  penitence  not  wrought  by 
the  spirit  of  grace,  while  it  means  the  revulsion  of 
the  mind  and  conscience  against  any  evil  which  has 
been  done,  came  to  mean  predominantly  revulsion 
against  acts  of  cruelty,  the  pity  which  followed  close 
on  these,  and  thus  pity  in  general."     p  178,  a  31. 

Rem  ONER  ATE  (for  reimburse),     aa  433. 

Rendered  (for  acted,  played,  sung),     aa  493. 

Rendition  (for  performance),     r  103,  x  199,  X. 


RELIGION RESIDENCE.  171 

(for  rendering),  r  359.  Here  Mr.  Mat- 
thews seems  to  forget  what  he  has  said  above.  See 
also  X  169. 

RENEWEDLY.  "As  repugnant  to  good  sense 
as  to  patience."  tt  240.  "Not  supported  by  good 
English  usage."     W. 

Renaissance.  "Another  question-begging  word. " 
ppp  174. 

Repair.  "  By  saying  '  Luther  repaired  to  Rome,' 
instead  of  'Luther  went  (or  journeyed)  to  Rome,' 
we  commit  a  blunder,  sanctioned  perhaps  by  pre- 
scription, but  none  the  less  on  that  account  a  blun- 
der; for  to  repair  means  to  return  home."   s  89. 

Replace  (for  displace  or  to  supply  the  place  of). 
"Means  properly  to  restore  to  its  place."  c  52.  "We 
are  sorry  to  see  that  Prof.  Rawlinson  talks  of 
'  replacing  the  Handbuch  of  Heeren  by  a  manual 
conceived  on  the  same  scale.'  The  vulgarism,  'to 
replace  A  by  B  '  in  the  sense  of  '  to  put  B  in  the 
place  of  A,'  threatens  soon  to  become  as  common  as 
those  odious  expressions,  '  those  sori  oi  things,'  and 
'lilce  I  do.'  "—Athenceum,  Nov.  26,  1870.  i  37,  y  104. 

Repudiate  (for  reject),  a  129,  X.  Defended,  vv 
95,  97. 

Resent.  "  Why  should  we  resent  (feel  again) 
insults,  and  not  affectionate  words  and  deeds?"  r  325, 
s  58.  Dr.  South  has  the  expression  "resenting  God's 
favors"  to  denote  gratitude,     y  64,  ppp  103. 

Reside  (for  live),     a  129,  x  169. 
Residence  (for  Iwme).     a  129,  x  169. 


172  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Restive  {fov  frisky).  "  It  means  standing  stub- 
bornly still."  a  152.  "Any  one  now  invited  to 
define  a  restive  horse  would  certainly  put  into  his 
definition  that  it  was  one  with  too  much  motion."  p 
181,  r  355,  X  169,  d  89. 

Kesvirrect.  "Our  correspondent  complains 
that  he  has  seen  the  word  '  resurrect '  in  The  Sun. 
If  this  be  so,  it  was  an  error  that  we  never  noticed, 
and  we  now  take  it  baclc  and  are  sorrj^  for  it.  In  so 
saying,  we  enjoy  the  high  satisfaction  which  is 
peculiar  to  one  who  is  willing  to  confess  his  wrong." 
— New  York  Sun. 

Resurrected,  a  229,  aa  402,  d  96.  tt  654. 
Defended,  v  194. 

Resurrectionized.  a  411,  aa  402.  (Resur- 
reciionised).     Defended,  v  194. 

Retaliate.  "  Why  should  we  not  retaliate  (that 
is,  pay  back  in  kind,  I'es,  talis)  kindnesses  as  well  as 
injuries?"    r  325,  y  63,  ppp  103. 

Reticence  "means  the  '  quality  (?)  of  holding 
one's  tongue,'  and  should  be  kept  distinct  from 
reserve,  a  wider  and  less  definite  term,  whose  nearest 
synonym  perhaps  is  '  caution.'  A  reserved  man  may 
on  indifferent  topics  wax  voluble  enough,  and  a  ret- 
icent man  need  not  in  all  ways  be  reserved. "   c  54. 

RETIRACY.  "Irredeemable  slang."  tt  628. 
"Rare."     W.,  Wb. 

RETIRE  {for  force  to  resign).  X.  Wb.  gives  this 
meaning. 


RESTIVE RIG. 


1T3 


Retire  (for  go  to  bed).  "A  vulgar,  but  unfor- 
tunately very  common  euphemism."     tt  533. 

Retrograde.    See  Progress. 

Revelate  (for  reveal),  aa  403.  "  Obsolete."  W., 
Wb. 

Revelations  (for  Revelation).  The  last  book  of 
the  Bible),     i  63.     ' 

Reverend  John  Jones  (for  the  Reverend  John 
Jones).  "The  article  is  absolutely  required."  a  153, 
X  170,  X. 

Reverend  (for  reverent),     i  119. 

Reverse.  "  'No  doubt,  if  we  could  choose,  many 
of  us  in  London  would  prefer  that  our  visitors 
should  carry  their  boots  in  their  hands  and  their 
hats  on  their  heads,  rather  than  the  reverse,  espe- 
cially upon  a  muddy  day.' — Arnold.  What  is  the 
reverse?  Is  it  carrying  their  hats  in  their  hands  and 
their  boots  on  their  heads?  Or  their  hands  in  their 
boots,  and  their  heads  in  their  hats?'    c  17. 

Revolt  (for  are  revolting  to).  Such  things  revolt 
us.     r  345. 

Rewrite.     Bej'ond  criticism,  v  60. 

Ride.    See  Drive,     tt  533,  v  170. 

Rig.  "  a  somewhat  vulgar  word,  with  the  pres- 
ent use  of  which,  however,  we  are  probably  all 
familiar  from  its  occurrence  in  John  Qilpin: 

'  He  little  dreamt  when  he  set  out 
Of  ruunhig  such  a  riij.'  "    p  182. 


174  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Right  (for  appropriate).  "A  placard  is  to  be  seen 
in  a  certain  farmyard :  '  There  is  a  place  for  every 
thing,  and  everything  for  a  place.  Any  person 
offending  against  these  rules  will  be  fined  2  d.'  By- 
the  by,  what  are  we  to  think  of  the  phrase  which 
came  in  during  the  Crimean  war,  The  right  man  in 
the  right  place  ?  How  can  the  right  man  be  in  the 
wrong  place,  or  the  wrong  man  in  the  right  place? 
We  used  to  illustrate  the  unfitness  of  things  by  say- 
ing that  the  round  man  had  got  into  the  square  hole, 
and  the  square  man  into  the  round  hole;  that  was 
correct  enough;  but  it  was  the  putting  incongruous 
things  together  that  was  wrong,  not  the  man,  nor  the 
hole.  This  puts  me  in  mind  of  the  servant  at  school 
once  coming  into  the  school-room  in  consequence  of 
some  interchange  of  slippers,  and  calling  out,  '  Has 
any  gentleman  got  his  wrong  slippers  ?  '  Now  if  they 
were  his,  they  were  not  wrong;  and  if  they  were 
wrong,  they  were  not  his."  i  238.  A  valet  reproved 
for  bringing  two  right  shoes  replied  that  he  thought 
it  was  but  right  to  leave  the  left. 

lligllt  (for  obligation).  "  'The  cars  have  as  good 
a  right  to  be  stopped  as  the  carriages.'  "  a  195,  x  170. 

Ytiglit  {for  just).     Right  here,     x  170. 

Right  away  (for  immediately).  "Altogether 
unjustifiable."  a  418.  "Long  since  ceased  to  be  a 
Boston  provincialism,  if  it  ever  was  one,  and  has 
recently  made  its  way  to  England  also."  tt  533,  y 
182.     "U.S."    W.,  Wb. 


RIGHT — RUN.  DOWN.  175 

Rise  up  (for  rise).  He  rose  up  and  left  the  room. 
zllO. 

Risible  (for  laugliable).  "Has  never  been  accepted 
English."    vv73. 

Risibilities.  "In  the  plural  form  are  [is]  only- 
heard  in  America."    tt  534. 

Rising"  (for  exceeding.  A  little  rmn^r  four  quarts). 
"  Still  considered  low."  tt  534.  "Colloquial."  W., 
Wb. 

RISKY.  "Unexceptionable  in  meaning,  what- 
ever purists  may  think  of  the  form  of  the  hybrid." 
tt535.     "U.S."     W.,Wb. 

Rock  (for  small  stone),     tt  535. 

RODE  (for  ridden,  participle),  a  121.  Allowed 
by  W. 

Role  (for  part).     X. 

Romanesque  (for  romantic),     aa  378. 

ROOSTER  (for  cock),  a  183,  tt  262.  "  U.  S.' 
W.,  Wb. 

Rotatory  (for  rotary),     d  19. 

Roughs.     X. 

Rowdies.    X.    "Low."  W. 

RUBBERS  (for  overshoes),  tt  536,  x  171.  See 
Gums.   "U.S."     Wb.     Not  given  by  W. 

Rule  high,  or  low  (of  price),     aa  487. 

Run.  "  Applied  with  reckless  freedom  to  every 
possible  enterprise."    tt  303,  325. 

Run  down,     v  280. 


Sabbath  (for  Simday).  "  Sunday  is  the  name  of 
a  day,  while  Sabbath  is  the  name  of  an  institution." 
tt  537,  V  292,  X  171. 

Salient  (for  assailable),     s  86. 

Saloon-parlor,     aa  501,  v  251. 

Same.  "  '  Held  the  same  opinions  in'fh  his  illus 
trious  friend. '— Macaulay.  Same  expresses  identity, 
and  therefore  cannot  be  properly  used  in  corre- 
spondence to  wit7i,  which  means  nearness,  contact, 
and  implies  duality,  severalness."  a  406.  "The 
very  mention  of  identity  should  have  suggested 
identical,  which,  a  synonym  of  same,  takes  with, — 
the  preposition  after  one,  also,  another  synonym  of 
same.  And  equal  with  was  once  as  good  as  equal  to. 
The  propriety  of  Mr.  White's  therefore  in  what  he 
says  about  same  is  one  of  the  profound  mysteries 
with  wliich  his  book  abounds.  Sometimes  the  same 
as  is  preferable  to  the  same  with;  but  it  is  when  a 
conjunction  is  indispensable;  and  it  is  not  because 
of  any  particular  relational  import  belonging  to  as. 
Phrases,  in  many  cases,  must  be  accepted  as  wholes. 
Lord  jMacaulay  disliked  elipses;  and  as,  instead  of 
witli,  would  necessitate  one."    v  303. 

Sample  (as  a  verb). 


SABBATH — SCHOLAR.  177 

Sample  Room,    a  154.  tt  316. 
Sanctuary,     a  129. 
Sanitarium  (for  sanatorium). 

Sanitary  (for  sanotor^).  ''Sanitary  means  ap- 
pertaining to  healtli;  sanatory  means  appertaining 
to  healing  or  curing:  "  The  town  is  in  such  a  bad 
sanitary  condition,  that  some  sanatory  measures 
must  be  undertaken.' "  i  87.  g40.  Neither  W.  nor 
Wb.  gives  sanatorixim.     Wb.  gives  sanitarium. 

Sat  (for  sitten).  a  120,  vv  65.  Bitten,  obsolete. 
Wb. 

Satisfyi.ng  (sometimes  ambiguous).  "  This  play, 
by  the  way.  is  one  of  the  most  satisfying  on  the 
stiiuo.  A  ter  seeing  it  once  no  one  wants  to  see  it 
again." — New  Orleans  Picayune. 

Saw  (for  have  seen,  with  never).  I  never  saw  such 
a  thing  before,     x  171. 

Scarcely.  "Another  misuse  of  than  is  making 
it  follow  scarcely,  hardly,  in  such  sentences  as  '  I  hud 
scarcely  addressed  him  than  he  knew  me.'  "  c  122, 
r364.  jBwHs  sometimes  similarly  misused.  "Scarce 
was  Sylla  dead,  but  (when)  he  put  in  for  public 
employment."    m  t^  127. 

Scholar  (for  pupil).  "  Webster  gives  as  the  first 
meaning  of  scholar,  'one  who  attends  a  school;  one 
who  learns  of  a  teacher:'  and  he  further  makes 
the  distinction  between  scholar  and  pupil  as 
follows:  'A  scholar  is  one  who  is  nnder  instruction; 
a  pupil  is  one  who  is  under  the  immediate  and  per- 


178  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

sonal  care  of  an  instructor.'  Scholar  and  pupil, 
although  subject  to  the  distinction  thus  drawn  by- 
Webster,  are,  nevertheless,  given  by  him  as  synony- 
mous. In  general  conversation  they  are  almost 
universally  used  as  interchangeable  vrords.  It 
would  be  a  reform  in  the  use  of  the  word  if  scholar 
could  be  limited  to  learned  persons,  and  pupil 
limited  to  youths  or  others  under  instruction.  But 
authority  is  expressly  against  his  view  of  the  case." 
— PubL'c  Ledger,  Phila. 

School  (for  shoal  of  fishes),  d  131.  Local  in 
the  United  States  and  England.     W. 

Scientific,  "for  all  that  Ben  Jonson,  Qaule, 
and  Milton,  with  Thomas  Taylor.  Charles  Lamb, 
and  Coleridge,  in  later  times,  have  shown  us  the 
right  word,  sciential,— ho\ds  its  ground,  and  is 
likely  to  go  on  holding  it."    v  157. 

SCIENTIST.  "Intolerable."  aa  468.  "Avery 
late  and  very  useful  neoterism."  v  309.  Not  given 
by  Wb. 

Scunner,    a  257. 

Secesh  (for  Confederate.)    X.    Colloquial.    Wb. 

SECTION  (for  neigMorhood).  x  172.  "A  dist- 
ant part  of  a  country  or  people,  community,  class, 
or  the  like."     Wb. 

Secure.  "In  our  present  English  the  difference 
between  safe  and  secure  is  hardly  recognized,  but 
once  it  was  otherwise.  Secure  was  subjective;  it  was 
a  man's  own  sense,  well  grounded  or  not,   of  the 


SCHOOL — SENSUOUS. 


179 


absence  of  danger;  safe  was  objective,  the  actual  fact 
of  such  absence  of  danger."  p  187.  A  man,  there- 
fore, might  be  secure,  without  being  safe. 

Seem  (used  superfluously.  I  can't  seem  to  be 
suited,     tt  540. 

Seem  (for  appear).  "  What  seems  is  in  the  mind ; 
what  appears  is  external." — Graham,     x  172. 

Segar  (for  cigar),  tt  540.  More  correctly  writ- 
ten  cigar.''    W. 

Seldom.  "  '  I  have  seldom,  if  ever,  seen  him,'  is  a 
contracted  form  of  'I  have  seldom  seen  him,  if, 
indeed,  I  have  ever  seen  him  at  all.'  '  I  have  seldom 
or  never  seen  him,'  on  the  other  hand,  stands  for  '  I 
have  seldom  seen  him,  or,  rather,  I  have  never  seen 
him  at  all.'  Each  phrase  has  its  own  pecviliar  mean- 
ins,  but  '  seldom  or  ever,'  and  'seldom  zj never '  are 
meaningless  alike."     c  121,  r  351,  i  234,  x  172,  z  122. 

Semi-oceasionally.    tt  630. 

Sensation.    X. 

Sensual,    \      ,>  ggj^g^if^i  [g  employed  now  only  in 

Sensuous.  \  ^    •' 

an  ill  meaning,  and  implies  ever  a  predominance  of 
sense  in  provinces  where  it  ought  not  so  to  predomi- 
nate. Milton,  feeling  that  we  wanted  another  word 
affirming  this  predominance  when  no  such  fault  was 
implied  by  it,  and  that  sensual  only  imperfectly 
expressed  this,  employed,  I  know  not  whether  he 
coined,  sensuous,  a  word  which,  if  it  had  rooted 
itself  in  the  language,  might  have  proved  of  excel- 
lent service."    p  188. 


180  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Seraphim  (for  seraph),     v  361.  x  173. 

Sergeant  (for  serjeant).  The  former  is  correct 
for  a  military  officer;  the  latter  for  a  serjeant-atlmo. 
y314. 

Series  {for period).  "A  long  series  of  ill-health." 
— e  I  263. 

Set  (for  sit),  a  157,  x  173,  r  351,  361,  n  78.  "  It 
is  said  that  the  brilliant  Irish  lawyer,  Curran,  once 
carelessly  observed  in  court,  '  An  action  tej^s,' and 
the  judee  corrected  him  by  remarking,  '  Lies,  Mr. 
Curran, — hens  lay; '  but  subsequentlj'  the  judge 
ordering  a  counsellor  to  '.s^^  down,' Curran  retali- 
ated, 'Sit  down,  your  honor, — hens  set.'  "  But  hens 
don't  set,  they  sit. 

Sepulture  (for  sepulchre),     v  45. 

Sett  (for  set).    See  Let. 

Settle  (for  pay).  '  'Accounts  may  be  settled  that 
is,  they  may  be  made  clear  and  satisfactory, — as 
the  passenger  wished  his  cup  of  coffee  to  be  made 
when  he  called  upon  the  negro  to  take  it  to  the  cap- 
tain's office  and  have  it  settled, — and  yet  they  may 
not  be  paid."    a  191.  tt  304.  x  173. 

Sewage  (for  seicerage).     d  33. 

8ewn  {ioY  sewed),     z  110.     "  Rarely  sew/i,"    Wb.  \ 

Shall  (for  will),  a  264,  aa  331,  r  366,  vv  49,  i  169, 
zll9. 

The  nice  distinctions  that  should  be  made  between 
these  two  auxiliaries  are,  in  some  parts  of  the  En- 
glish-speaking world,  often  disregarded,  and  that- 


SERAPHIM SHALL  AND  WILL.  181 

too,  by  persons  of  high  culture.  The  proper  use  of 
shall  and  will  can  much  better  be  learned  from  exam- 
ple than  from  precept.  Many  persons  who  use 
them,  and  also  should  and  would,  with  well  nigh 
unerring  correctness,  do  so  unconsciously;  it  is  sim- 
ply habit  with  them,  and  they,  though  their  culture 
may  be  limited,  will  receive  a  sort  of  verbal  shock 
from  Biddy's  inquiry,  "  Will  I  put  the  kettle  on, 
ma'm?"  when  your  Irish  or  Scotch  countess  would 
not  be  in  the  least  disturbed  by  it. 

Shall,  in  an  affirmative  sentence,  in  the  first 
person,  and  will  in  the  second  and  third  persons, 
merely  to  announce  future  action.  Thus,  "I  sJiall  go 
to  town  to-morrow."  "I  shall  wait  for  better 
weather. "  "  We  shall  be  glad  to  see  you. "  "I  shall 
soon  be  twenty."  "  We  shall  set  out  early,  and  s/iall 
try  to  arrive  by  noon."  "  You  will  be  pleased." 
"You  will  soon  he  twenty."  "You  will  find  him 
honest."     "He  icill  go  with  us." 

Shall,  in  an  affirmative  sentence,  in  the  second  and 
third  person,  announces  the  speaker's  intention  to 
control.  Thus,  "You  s/taW  hear  me  out. "  "You 
shall  go,  sick  or  well."  "He  shall  be  my  heir." 
"They  sJiall  go,  whether  they  want  to  go  or  not." 

Will,  in  the  first  person,  expresses  a  promise, 
announces  the  speaker's  intention  to  control,  pro- 
claims a  determination.  Thus,  "  I  will  [I  promise  to] 
assist  you."  "  I  will  [I  am  determined  to]  have  my 
right."  "  We  will  [we  promise  to]  come  to  you  in 
the  morning."  ■ 

Shall,  in  an  interrogative  sentence,  in  the  first  and 


182  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

third  person,  consults  the  will  or  judgment  of  an- 
other; in  the  second  person,  it  inquires  concerning 
the  intention  or  future  action  of  another.  Thus, 
"/S/iaMI  go  with  you?"  "  When  shall  we  see  you 
again?"  "  When  s7ia^^  I  receive  it?"  "When  shall 
I  get  well?"  "  When  shall  we  get  there?"  "  Shall 
he  come  with  us  ?"  "  Shall  you  demand  indemnity  ?" 
"Shall  you  go  to  town  to  morrow  ?"  "What  shall 
you  do  about  it?" 

Will,  in  an  interrogative  sentence,  in  the  second 
person,  asks  concerning  the  wish,  and,  in  the  third 
person,  concerning  the  purpose  or  future  action  of 
others.  Thus,  "  TFi7?  you  have  an  apple?"  "Will 
you  go  with  me  to  my  uncle's?"  "  Will  he  be  of  the 
party?"  "  Will  they  be  willing  to  receive  us?" 
"When  will  he  be  here?" 

Will  cannot  be  used  interrogatively  in  the  first  per- 
son singular  or  plural.  We  cannot  say,  "Will  I 
go?"  " Will  I  help  jonr  " Will  I  he  laieV  "Will 
we  get  there  in  time?"  "Will  we  see  you  again 
soon?" 

Official  courtesy,  in  order  to  avoid  the  semblance 
of  compulsion,  conveys  its  commands  in  the  you-will 
form  instead  of  the  strictly  grammatical  you  shall 
form.  It  says,  for  example,  "You  will  proceed  to 
Key  West,  where  you  will  find  further  instructions 
awaiting  you." 

A  clever  writer  on  the  use  of  shall  and  will  says 
that  whatever  concern's  one's  beliefs,  hopes,  fears, 
likes,  or  dislikes,  cannot  be  expressed  in  conjunction 
w'lih  I  will.     Are  there  no  exceptions  to  this  rule? 


SHALL  AND  WILL.  183 

If  I  say,  "  I  think  I  shall  go  to  Philadelphia  tomor- 
row,"  I  convey  the  impression  that  my  going 
depends  upon  circumstances  beyond  my  control; 
but  if  I  say  I  think  I  will  go  to  Philadelphia  to-mor- 
row," I  convey  the  impression  that  my  going 
depends  upon  circumstances  within  my  control, — 
that  my  going  or  not  depends  on  mere  inclination. 
We  certainly  must  say,  "I  fear  that  I  shall  lose  it;" 
"I  hope  that  I  shall  be  well ;"  "  I  believe  that  I  shall 
have  the  ague;"  "I  hope  that  I  shall  not  be  left 
alone;"  "I  fear  that  we  «7;rt/niave  bad  weather;" 
"  1  shall  dislike  the  country;"  "I  shall  like  the  per- 
formance." The  writer  referred  to,  asks,  "  How 
can  one  say,  '  I  will  have  the  headache'?"  I  answer, 
very  easily,  as  every  young  women  knows.  Let  us 
see;  "Mary,  you  know  you  promised  John  to  drive 
out  with  him  to-morrow;  how  shall  you  get  out  of 
it?"  "  Oh,  I  wiM  have  the  headache !"  We  request 
that  people  'will  do  thus  or  so,  and  not  that  they 
shall.  Thus,  "  It  is  requested  th;it  no  one  loill  leave 
the  room." 

Shall  is  rarely,  if  ever,  used  for  toill;  it  is  loill  that 
is  used  for  shall.  Expressions  like  the  following  are 
common :  "  Where  \oiil  you  be  next  weekt  ' '  I  will 
be  at  home."  "We  will  have  dinner  at  six  o'clock." 
"How-  will  you  go  about  it?"  "When  will  you 
begin  ?  "  "  When  will  you  set  out  ? "  "  What  icill 
you  do  with  it  ?  "  In  all  such  expressions,  when  it 
is  a  question  of  mere  future  action  on  the  part  of 
the  person  speaking  or  spoken  to,  the  auxiliary 
must  be  shall  and  not  icill. 


184  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Should  and  would  follow  the  regimeu  of  shall  and 
will.  Would  is  often  used  for  should;  should  rarely 
for  icould.  Correct  speakers  say,  ' '  1  should  go  to 
town  to-morrow  if  I  had  a  liorse."  "  I  should  not; 
I  should  wait  for  better  weather."  "We  should  be 
glad  to  see  you."  "  We  should  have  started  earlier, 
if  the  weather  had  been  clear."  "  I  should  like  to 
go  to  town,  and  toould  go  if  I  could."  "I  would 
assist  you  if  I  could."  "  I  should  have  been  ill  if  I 
had  gone."  "1  loould  1  were  home  again!"  "I 
should  go  fishing  to  day  if  I  were  home."  "  I  shoxdd 
so  like  to  go  to  Europe  ?  "  "I  should  prefer  to  see  it 
first. "  "I  should  be  delighted. "  ' '  I  should  be  glad 
to  have  you  sup  with  me."  "I  knew  that  I  should 
be  ill."'  "1  feared  that  I  sho^dd  lose  it."  "I 
hoped  that  I  s^omW  see  him."  "I  thought  that  I 
shotdd  have  the  ague."  "I  hoped  that  I  should  not 
be  left  alone."  "I  was  afraid  that  we  should  have 
bad  weather."  "I  knew  I  shoidd  dislike  the  coun- 
try." "I  should  not  like  to  do  it,  and  icill  not 
[determination]  unless  compelled  to."    x  173. 

"  Now  you  shall  have  three  ladies  walk  to  gather 
flowers,  and  then  we  must  believe  the  stage  to  be  a 
garden.  By  and  by  we  hear  news  of  a  ship- wreck 
in  the  same  place;  then  we  are  to  blame  if  we 
accept  it  not  for  a  rock.  On  the  back  of  that  comes 
out  a  hideous  monster  with  fire  and  smoke,  and 
then  the  miserable  beholders  are  bound  to  take  it 
for  a  cave ;  while  in  the  mean  time  two  armies  fly 
in,  represented  with  swords  and  bucklers;  and  then 
what  hard  heart  will  not  receive  it  for  a  pitched 
field  V  "    Sidney. 


SHALL    AND    WILL.  1S5 

As,  besides  Ibe  general  fault  of  prolixity  and 
indistinctness,  this  sentence  contains  several  inaccu- 
racies, I  will  be  obliged  to  enter  into  a  minute  dis- 
cussion of  its  structure  and  parts,     Blair  I  316. 

A  young  men's  Institute  for  Discussion  on  Self- 
improvement  is  reported  in  a  Scottish  provincial 
paper  to  have  met  and  discussed  the  question, 
"  Shall  the  material  universe  be  destroyed  ?  "    i  176. 

"The  Edinburg  Review  denounces  the  distinction 
of  shall  and  will,  by  their  neglect  of  which  the 
Scotch  are  so  often  betrayed,  as  one  of  the  most 
capricious  and  inconsistent  of  all  imaginable  irregu- 
larities, and  as  at  variance  not  less  with  original 
etymology  than  with  former  usage.  Prof.  Marsh 
regards  it  as  a  verbal  quibble,  which  will  soon  dis- 
appear from  our  language.  It  is  a  quibble,  just  as 
any  distinction  is  a  quibble  to  persons  who  are  too 
dull,  too  lazy  or  too  careless  to  comprehend  it. 
With  as  much  propriety  might  the  distinction  be- 
tween the  indicative  and  subjunctive  forms  of  the 
verb,  or  the  distinction  hitiviae^a  farther  -ahA  fur Iher, 
strong  and  robust,  empty  and  vacant,  be  pronounced 
a  verbal  quibble.  Sir  Edmund  W.  Read  has  shown 
that  the  difference  is  not  one  which  has  an  exist- 
ence only  in  the  pedagogue's  brain,  but  that  it  is  as 
real  and  legitimate  as  that  between  be  and  am,  and 
dates  back  as  far  as  AVickliflfe  and  Chaucer,  while 
it  has  also  the  authority  of  Shakspere."    r  371. 

Shamefaced  (for  shamefast).     a  230. 

Sliay  (for  cAaise).     tt  541.     Vulgar.  W.     Wb. 

Shiiiiiiiy  (for  shirt),     x  176. 


186  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Shire.  "A  universal  pleonasm  used  by  Ameri- 
cans in  speaking  of  the  County  of  Berkshire,  forget- 
ful of  the  fact  that  skire  (a  share;  means  the  same 
thing  as  county. "     tt  254. 

Shoe-horu  (for  slioeing-lwrn).     a  232. 

Shore  (for  sheared).     "I  should  be  rather  sur- 
prised to  hear  anything  but  shore  in  England  "  v  139. 
Should.     See  Shall. 
Shove.     "Not  very  elegant  vrord."    y  16. 
Show,  preferable  to  sheio.     z,  i  40. 

Shrewd.  "The  weakness  of  the  world's  moral 
indignation  against  evil  causes  a  multitude 
of  words  which  once  conveyed  intensest  moral 
reprobation  gradually  to  convey  none  at  all,  or  it 
may  be  even  praise.  Shrewd  and  slirewdness  must 
be  classed  among  these."     p  191. 

Shut  to  (for  shut),     tt  633. 

Shut  too  (for  shut  to),     i  35. 

Sick.     See  III.     tt  543. 

Signature.  "A  man's  signature,  we  are  told,  is 
at  the  bottom  of  his  letter,  and  therefore  he  writes 
o»e7' his  signature !  But— answering  a  precisian  ac- 
cording to  his  preciseuess — the  signature  was  not 
there  when  the  man  wrote  the  letter:  it  was  added 
afterward.  How,  then,  was  the  letter  written  over 
the  signature?  This  is  the  very  lunacy  of  literalism. 
A  man  writes  under  a  signature,  whether  the  signa- 
ture is  at  the  top,  or  the  bottom,  or  the  middle  of 
his  letter,  "—a  190.     x  177. 


SHIRE SMUG. 


187 


Silly  "  Has  successively  meant  (1)  blessed,  i^i)  in- 
nocent, (3)  harmless,  (4)  weakly,  foolish."  p  192. 
ppp  118. 

Since.  Must  be  followed  by  the  perfect  tense, 
not  the  past;  as  when  Dr.  Johnson  says:  "Authors 
who  wrote  since  the  accession  of  Elizabeth."  v  9, 
xl78. 

{for  ar/o).     -'Since  is  often  used  for  ago, 

but  ago  never  for  since."     x  178. 

SiKNAME  (for  surname),     y  214,  r  318,  ppp  369. 

Sis.     Not  an  abbreviation  of  sister,     a  230. 

Sit  on  (for  sit  in,  as  a  member  of).  "In  this 
year  Governor  Randolph  was  to  be  chosen  to  sit  on 
the  Legislature,  but  IMr.  Jefferson  was  long  violently 
opposed  to  such  a  plan."— Tucker's  Life  of  Jeffer- 
son, I,  319.     tt  253.     See  On. 

SLAB-SIDED.  "Applied  to  persons  of  unreliable 
character;  taken  from  slabs,  outside  pieces  of  timber 
which  occasionally  serve  to  make  country  bridges 
of  a  peculiarly  unstable  and  unsafe  character."  tt 
544.     Not  given  by  W. 

Slick  (for  sleek),     pp  201. 

Slim.  Correctly  applied  to  attendance,  excuse. 
sl84. 

Small  pox.     See  Alms. 

Smell  of  (formed),     x  196. 

Smug.  "It  still  means  adorned,  but  seeks  to  pre- 
sent the  very  adornment  and  smoothness  which  it 


188  VERBAL     PITFALLS. 

implies  in  a  ridiculous,  ignoble  point  of  view."     p 
193. 

Snob.  "  Thackeray  immortalized  snob  in  his  cel- 
ebrated "  papers  ";  and  though  the  word  is  not  to  be 
recommended,  it  must  be  allowed  that  it  is  very  ex- 
pressive."   y  177. 

So(for«s).  See  As.  tt648.  "And  the  breath  of 
the  people  is  like  the  voice  of  an  exterminating 
angle,  not  so  killing  but  so  secret  " — Jermy  Taylor. 

That  is,  in  such  wise.  It  would  be  well  to  note 
after  what  time  as  became  the  correlatives  to  so, 
and  even,  as  in  this  instance,  the  preferable  sub- 
stitute. We  should  have  written  as  in  both  places, 
probably,  but  at  all  events  in  the  latter,  transplac- 
ing  the  sentences  as  secret  though  not  so  killing  ;  or 
not  so  killing  but  quite  as  secret.     Coleridge  v.  141. 

So  inucli  so.  The  shipments  are  large,  so 
much  so  as  to  tax  the  capacity  of  the  various  lines. 
X  179. 

SociAHhK  {for  social).  "The  meaning  of  sociable 
is  fitted  for  society,  ready  for  companionship,  quick 
to  unite  with  others— generally  for  pleasure.  *S6>- 
cial  expresses  rather  the  relations  of  men  in  society, 
communities  or  commonwealths."     a  161. 

SoLEMiNZE.  "  Now  sanctioned  by  the  best  ora- 
tors."   tt240. 

Solidarity,  y  105.  Solidity,  one  old  word  to  de- 
note the  idea  which  it  conveys,  could  never,  from 
its  ambiguity,  find  general  entertainment."  v  310 
pp  122. 


SNOB SPONTANEOUS.  189 

Some  (for  aSo!/):,  -'some  five  miles.")  "It  would 
be  difficult  to  find  in  any  tongue  another  word  or 
phrase  which  has  such  simplicity  of  origin  and 
structure,  and  such  length  of  authorative  usage  in 
its  support,  as  this."     a  257. 

(for  somewhat).    Some  better,  to-day.  x  180. 

Somebody  else's.     See  Anybody  else's. 

Soniewlieres  (for  some  where),     d  25 

Sort.     See  Kind  on  74. 

Sparrowgrass.  v  161.  "A  corruption  of  As- 
paragus. "    W. 

Spare  (for  grant,  vouchsafe).  "  Mr.  Macaulay 
might  have  spared  (vouchsafed)  a  passing  eulogy  to 
those  illustratrious  philosophers  and  inventors,"  N. 
Brit.  Rev.     x  389,  a  55. 

Special.     "A  much  overworked  word."  a  162. 

Speciality.    |  rpj^^  gucrorestion  that  they  should 
Specl-vlty      S  °°  •' 

be  used  discriminatively  is  worthy  of  consideration, 
aa  477,  x  180. 

Specious  fallacy,     x  180. 

Spinster.  A  name  that  was  often  applied  to 
women  of  evil  life,  in  that  they  were  set  the  en- 
forced labor  of  spinning."    p  197. 

Splendid.  "The  use  of  splendid  to  express 
great  elegance,  is  coarse."    a  163,  x  180. 

Spleuclidious.    f  153.     Obsolete  W.  Wb. 

SPONTANEOUS  (for  voluntary).  The  falsity  of 
the  notion   that   makes  sjwntaneous  and  voluntary 


190  VERBAL    PITFALI-S, 

synonyms  would  be  instantly  recognized,  did  we 
speak  of  "  voluntary  combustion."    c  55. 

Spoonsful  (for  spoonfuls),     i  28,  n  63,  r  364. 
Stampede.     "  Can  in  no  sense  be  said  to  belong 
to  our  language.''    y  181. 

Stand  upon  (for  insist  upon),     aa  499. 
Stand-point  (for  point-of-view).     a  331,  443,  d  34, 

V  289,  X  180,  X,  y  49.  "No  doubt  an  improvement 
on  point-of-view,  as  being  a  closer  and  therefore  more 
convenient  expression."     y  49. 

Start  (for  set  out).     X. 

Starvation.  "It  is  said  that  Mr.  Dundas,  after- 
ward Lord  Melville,  got  his  nickname  from  a  new 
word  which  he  introduced  in  a  speech  in  the  House 
of  Commons,  in  1775, on  the  American  War.  He  was 
the  first  to  use  the  word  starvation  (a  hybrid  forma- 
tion, in  which  a  Saxon  root  was  united  with  a  Latin 
ending),  and  was  ever  afterwards  called  '  Starvation 
Dundas! '  "     r  276,  s  53,  tt  552,  y  51,  v  279. 

State  (for  say),     a  163,  X. 

Stickler.     "  Slightly  contemptuous  term."  f  124. 

Store  (for  the  English  sho])).     tt  302. 

Stopping  (for  staying).  At  what  hotel  are  you 
stopping?  "'If  you  come  vd  any  time  within  ten 
miles  of  my  house,  just  stop. '  "  r  359,  d  73,  tt  554,  x 
181.     Colloquial.  Wb. 

STORM  (for  rain).  "A  stm-m  is  a  tumult,  a  com- 
motion of  the  elements;  but  rain  may  fall  as  gently 


SPOONSFUL SUICIDE.  191 

as  mercy."    a  163,  x  181.     "Often  a  fall  of  rain  or 
snow."    Wb. 

Story  (for  storey,  as  the  landing  of  a  house), 
y  214. 

Straightavay.     Better  than  immediately,     x  181. 

Strategic  (for  stratagatie)  d  33. 

Strum.  "Strum  or  thrum  should  be  used,  and 
not  drum,  where  the  noisy  and  unskillful  fingering 
of  a  musical  instrument  is  meant."    g  43. 

Stiipendious  (for  siupendotis) .  Milton  used 
this  form,  but  it  is  still  a  cockneyism.  DeFoe  wrote 
stupenduous.     v  160. 

Subjunctive  Mood,  n  79.     See  i  211. 

Subside.  As  applied  to  persons  is  a  modern 
slang  term,  expressive  of  their  giving  up,  or  at  least 
beginning  silent.  "  Therefore  the  doughty  General 
subsided." 

Sul)straction  (for  subtraction),  v.  119.  Only 
in  the  sense  of  the  withdrawing  or  withholding 
of  some  right.     W.  Wb, 

Succeed  (for  give  success).  "  If  Providence  suc- 
ceed us."    r  365. 

Such  (for  so).  Such  a  high  spire,  r  353  x  190. 
"  Suc7i  an  exti'avaga?d  young  man,"  for  so  extrava- 
gant a  young  man.     z  122. 

Suicide  (as  a  verb).  "Its  inadmissability  de- 
pends not  upon  its  noun  form,  but  upon  its  mean- 
ing."    na  310,  It  555. 


192  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

"I  wonder  what  kind  of  an  event  an  vnsuccess- 
ful  suicide  is. "     aa  41 1 . 

Summarize.  "Frequently  met  with  in  the  writ- 
ings of  good  authors."     tt  240,  Hare.     W.  Wb. 

Summons  (for  mmmon,  verb)  x  190,  n  113.  Rare 
W.  Wb. 

Summons.     See  Alms.     But  see  i  31  tt  555. 

SUNG  (for  sang,  preterite),  x  179.  Obsolescent 
Wb.  W. 

SuPERVise  (for  oversee),     a  129. 

Supersede  often  wrongly  spelled  supercede  c  55. 

Superior  (for  able,  mrtuous).     See  Inferior. 

Superlative  (for  comparative  degree,  in  speaking 
of  two).  "  Superfluous  as  this  dual  form  may  be. 
neglect  of  it  is  contrary  to  established  usage."  c  73, 
r  352.     But  see  Last. 

Suppositious  (for  imaginary),     x  191. 

Sure  (for  surely).  "A  mere  affirmative  ex- 
pletive."   tt639. 

Surname.  "  From  the  French  surnom,  me&nmg 
additional  name,  and  should  not,  therefore,  be 
spelled  sirname,  as  if  it  meant  the  name  of  one's 
sire."     r313. 

Sustain  (for  suffer),    i  251. 

Sweat  of  his  brow  (for  sweat  of  Ms  face).  Genesis 
III,  19).     d  108. 

Swell  (as  a  noun.)     "A  very  convenient  and  ex- 


SUMMARIZE — SYNONYMOUS.  193 

pressive  word,  used  now  by  the  best  speakers  of 
English  without  hesitation."     aa  485. 

SYMPATHY  WITH  (for  sympathy  for),  vv.  19. 
Sympathy  when  synoj^omous  with  commiseration 
"is  commonly  followed  hj  for;  the  verb  sympathize 
is  followed  by  with.'"     Wb. 

Synonynioiis  (for  identical)  "Our  interest  in 
Persia  is  synonymous  with  that  of  the  Persians." 
— A.  Arnold,    c  55. 


Table-board,    aa  418. 

Taboo.     X. 

Take  in  (for  fZw;)e).     v  125.     Vulgar.    W.,  Wb, 

Take  it  (for  understand  if),     aa  499.     See  i  230. 

Take  {ior  have,  as  of  food).  "The  verb  to  take 
is  open  to  the  being  considered  a  vulgar  verb  when 
used  in  reference  to  dinner,  tea,  or  general  refresh- 
ments. '  "Will  you  take  some  tea?  '  '  Will  you  take 
some  mutton?'  'Will  you  take  some  soup?'  In 
fact,  any  request  which  has  in  its  object  the  fortify- 
ing of  the  inner  man,  if  prefaced  by  'Will  you  take,' 
is  not  considered  to  be  comme  il  faut,  the  verb  in 
favor  for  the  offering  of  these  civilities  being  the 
verb  to  have.  Why  the  one  verb  should  be  in 
fashion,  and  the  other  out  of  favor,  is  not  difficult 
of  comprehension ;  and  society  may  be  congratulated 
upon  its  insistance  on  having  the  right  verb  in  the 
right  place,  providing  that  the  verb  to  take  be  taken 
to  mean  'to  seize  what  is  not  given,'  'to  catch  by 
surprise  or  urtitice,'  '  to  lay  hold  on,'  '  to  snatch,  to 
seize,  or  to  get  hold  of  a  thing  in  almost  any  way,' 
leaving  out  of  the  question  any  other  application 
of  this  verb;  while  the  verb  to  have,  when  used  in 
this  sense,  must  be  taken  to  mean  'to  obtain,  to 
euj<)3',    to    possess  :  '     thus    all    enjoyment  would 


TABLE   BOARD — TASTE    OF.  195- 

appear  to  be  derived  through  the  verb  to  take." — 
Society  Small  Talk,  317. 

Talent  (for  talents,  as  a  man  of  talent),  v  61, 
ppp  114,  X. 

Talented.  "I  regret  to  see  that  vile  and  barba- 
rous vocable  talented  stealing  out  of  the  newspapers 
into  the  leading  reviews  and  most  respectable  pub- 
lications of  the  day.  Why  not  shillinged,fartMnged, 
tenpenced,  etc.  ?  The  formation  of  a  passive  partici- 
ple from  a  noun  is  a  license  that  nothiug  but  a  very 
peculiar  felicity  can  excuse."  h  — ,  i  109,  X.  On 
the  other  hand,  see  v  61-76,  c  57,  tt557,  y  193,  v  70. 
"Still  it  were  well  that,  before  employing  talented, 
we  should  first  consider  whether  clever  would  not 
serve  our  turn  as  well  or  better. "  c  57.  See  Desira- 
bility. 

Tall  (for  extravagant),     y  180. 

Talk  (for  speak).  '  'A  child  may  be  able  to  speak, 
that  is,  to  say  mamma  and  papa,  but  not  to  to?A;,that 
is,  to  put  words  together  intelligently."  aa  407. 
We  speak  French,  but  talk  is  not  tracsitive. 

Tangenti  a  l  (for  tangental).    a  317.    But  see  vv  68. 
Tapib.     X. 

Takpaulin.  "  Not  any  longer  used  except  in  the 
case  of  the  shorter  form  of  tar  for  sailor."  p  206. 
Dean  Trench  undoubtedly  means,  "  Not  any  longer 
used  for^sailor  except  in  the  shorter  form  of  tar. " 

Taste  of  (for  taste),     x  196.     So  of  smell. 


196  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Tasty.  "Shall  we  &&y  tasty?  A  milliner,  as 
Coleridge  remarks,  might."     f  251. 

Tea.  ' '  In  English  and  German,  the  word  tea  has, 
within  the  last  couple  of  centuries,  arbitrarily  taken 
the  place  of  decoction,  as  in  the  forms  beef  tea,  etc." 
s  224,  tt  395.  "  Tea  is  no  less  or  more  than  tea;  and 
while  we  call  strong  broth  beef-tea,  or  a  decoction  of 
cammomile  flowers  cammomile  tea,  we  cannot  con- 
sistently laugh  at  Biddy  when  she  asks  whether  we 
will  have  tay  tay  or  coffee  tay"    a  163. 

Team.  Unsettled  whether  it  includes  the  vehicle, 
r  254. 

Technique,     aa  493. 

Technology.  "For  tenrdnoloyy,  should  also  be 
mentioned  as  an  ignorant  Gallicism  which  seems  to 
be  creeping  into  use."     v  175. 

Teetb-aclie  {lov  toothache).  So  " white- teethed 
maids." — Howells.  "A  noun  used  as  an  adjective 
expresses  an  abstract  idea,  and  when  by  the  intro- 
duction of  the  plural  form  this  idea  is  broken  up 
into  a  collective  multitude  of  individuals,  it  falls 
ludicrously  into  concrete  ruin."    a  189. 

Telegrapher  (for  telegraphist),  a  215.  But 
see  vv  59. 

Telegram.  "Used  first  by  the  editor  of  the 
Albany /omw(Z,  April  6,  1852."  tt559.  "Telegraph 
is  equally  good  as  a  verb  expressing  the  act  of  writ- 
ing, and  as  a  noun  expressing  the  thing  written. 
*  *  In  monograph,  epigraph,  and  paragraph  the 
last  syllable  represents  ypdqir},   —  a  writing;  in 


TASTY TENOR. 


197 


monogram,  epigram,  and  diagram,  the  last  syllable 
represents  ypd/nna,  =  an  engraved  character,  a 
letter."  But  see  vv  41,  46,  a  233.  "There  were 
plenty  of  faults  pointed  out  in  its  structure,  and 
plenty  of  substitutes  proposed  for  it  by  the  fault- 
finders. Several  of  the  substitutes  were  doubtless 
better  and  more  correctly  formed;  but.  in  the  words 
of  the  old  epitaph,  'physicians  was  in  vain';  the 
term  was  made,  launched,  accepted,  adopted."  s 
173,  y  201,  tt  557.  "And  then  there  is,  as  against 
the  exact,  but  surfeiting,  telegrapheme,  our  lawless 
telegram,  to  which  is  strictly  applicable  the  maxim 
of  the  civilians  as  regards  a  clandestine  marriage: 
'Fieri  non  debuit,  sed,  factum,  valet.'  "     v  158. 

Tell.  Properly  to  co?<;i«.  "  The  accurate  meta- 
phor is  to  tell  a  tale,  from  the  act  of  counting  a  num- 
ber; in  which  sense  the  Boolv  of  Exodus  mentions 
that  the  Israelites  were  compelled  to  deliver  their 
tale  of  bricks."  So  in  ^intold  gold,  ihe  mm  twice- 
told;  and  hence  to  toll  a  bell,  and  nine  tailors  (tellers, 
strokes  of  the  bell,  three  for  a  child,  six  for  a 
woman,  nine  for  a  man)  make  a  man.  s  70-73. 
For  1  can't  tell,  meaning  I  don't  know,  see  tt  641. 

Tempeh.  "Used  by  Americans  in  the  majority  of 
cases  to  denote  passion,  while  in  England  it  ex- 
presses, on  the  contrary,  the  control  of  passion."  tt 
559. 

Tenor  (for  tenour).  "  With  the  u  means  contin- 
ity  of  state,  but  without  it,  signifies  a  certain  clef  in 
music."    bb  49. 


19S  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Term  (for  clause).  Used  of  language,  signifies 
not  a  clause  but  a  word,     i  196. 

Test,     v  300. 

Than  (as  a  preposition).  "Prof.  Bain  defends 
'the  use  of  me,  him,  after  the  conjunction  than,  in 
whose  favor  there  is  the  authority  of  an  extensive, 
if  not  predominating,  usage:  '  She  was  neither 
better  nor  wiser  than  you  or  me.' — Thackeray. 
Universal  usage  could  hardly,  it  seems  to  us,  justify 
this  departure  from  a  general  rule,  such  departure 
being  always  unnecessary,  and  often  leading  to 
serious  ambiguity.  Once  admit  it.  and  how  can  you 
decide  whether  '  You  know  him  better  than  me  ' 
means  '  You  know  him  better  than  you  know  me,' 
or  you  know  him  better  than  I  do  ?  '  "  c  160,  x  197. 
Alford,  relying  mainly  upon  than  whom,  as  an  illus- 
tration, than  who  being  intolerable,  defends  the 
objective,  and  says  that  than  me  is  curiously  con- 
firmative of  what  has  been  sometimes  observed, 
that  men  in  ordinary  converse  shrink,  in  certain 
cases,  from  the  use  of  the  bare  nominative  of  the 
personal  pronoun,  i  153,  199.  But  see  bb  94. 
See  As. 

Tlian  (for  when).  ''The  English  Admiral  was 
hardly  in  the  Channel  than  he  was  driven  *  *  ." 
Froude  a  49. 

See  Prefer,  Scarcely.  "In  modern  usage, 
than  is  used  only  after  comparatives,  to  introduce 
the  standard  of  comparison."     c  123,  y  206. 

Thanks  (for  thanic  you).     In  questionable  taste. 


TEEM TPIAT.  199 

X  200.  A  fashion  has  come  in  in  regard  to  the  good 
old  phrase,  Thank  you,  which  is  now  abreviated  to 
Thanks.  This  is  fashionable  just  now,  but  it  can- 
not be  called  cordial  or  grammatical.  It  is  as  if 
you  did  your  politeness  up  in  a  ball  and  threw  it  at 
the  head  of  your  friend.  No  one  is  hurt  by  a 
cordial  Thank  you. 

■  That  (for  icho,  or  which).  "  Who  or  which  con- 
nect two  coordinate  sentences,  tlint  being  '  the  proper 
restrictive,  explicative,  limiting  or  defining  relative, 
the  relative  of  the  adjective  sentence.'  c  7S).  Thus 
'  There  were  very  few  passengers,  who  escaped  with- 
out serious  injury,'  means  that  all  the  passengers 
were  saved.  '  There  were  very  few  passengers 
that  escaped  without  serious  injury,'  means  that 
nearly  all  were  either  lo.si  or  injured."  c  79,  m  69, 
pp  335,  X  200.  "There  are  cases  iu  which  tluit  is 
properly  used  when  applied  to  persons,  instead  of 
wJlo  :  1st,  when  it  fol'.ows  the  interrogative  wlto,  or 
an  adjective  in  the  superlative  degree;  as,  'Who 
that  has  any  sense  of  right  would  reason  thus  ? ' 
'  He  was  the  oldest  person  tJbat  I  saw.'  2d,  When 
it  follows  the  pronominal  adjective  same;  as,  'He 
was  the  same  man  that  I  saw  before.'  3d,  When 
persons  make  but  a  part  of  the  antecedent  ;  as 
'The  man  and  things  tliat  he  mentioned.'  4lh, 
After  an  antecedent  introduced  by  the  expletive  it; 
as  'It  was  I,  not  he,  that  did  it."  W.  "If  the 
relative  clause  simply  conveys  an  additional  idea, 
and  is  not  properly  explanatory  or  restrictive,  who 
or  which  (not  that)  is  employed."     Wb. 


200  VERBAL     IMIFALLS. 

This  distinctiou  in  tlie  use  of  that  as  a  restrictive 
is  comparatively  modern.  Blair  (Lecture  xx)  cen- 
sures Addison  for  saying  "A  man  of  a  polite 
imagination  is  let  into  a  great  many  pleasures  that 
the  vulgar  are  not  capable  of  receiving,"  saying, 
"  In  some  cases  we  are  indeed  obliged  to  use  that 
for  a  relative  in  order  to  avoid  the  ungraceful  repeti- 
tion of  which  in  the  same  sentence.  But  when  we 
are  laid  under  no  necessity  of  this  kind,  which  is 
always  the  preferable  word." 

(for  as).     "  In  the  same  sense  that  I  have 

considered  it."     v  257. 

(for  such,  so).     ' '  To    tJiat  degree  as  was 

never  known."     v  257,  x  206. 

(for  this).      "  This  and   these  refer  to  per 

sons  and  things  present,  or  under  immediate  con- 
sideration ;  that  and  there  to  persons  or  things  not 
present,  or  not  under  immediate  consideration  ;  or 
if  either  of  these,  one  degree  further  removed  than 
the  others  of  which  are  used  this  and  there.  *  * 
I  have  a  Scottish  friend  who  always  designates  the 
book  which  he  has  in  his  hand  ?iS  that  book;  the 
portfolio  he  is  turning  over  as  those  drawings.  We 
have  this  usage  in  England,  but  it  carries  another 
meaning.  If  I  have  a  book  in  my  hand,  and  say 
'  2'hat  book  will  make  a  great  sensation,'  I  mean  to 
remove  my  own  and  my  hearers  attention  from  the 
particular  volume,  or  even  the  present  consideration 
of  its  contents,  and  to  describe  it  in  its  general,  and 
as  it  were  historical,  affect  on  the  world."    i  78. 


THAT THEN.  20l 

(the  conjunction  too  often  omitted),    d  70. 

"One  would  say,  "  I  told  him  I  had  called  on  Gen- 
eral Taylor,"  omitting  the  conjunction,  tJiat  before 
the  second  member  of  the  period;  but  if  we  em- 
ployed Romance  words,  we  should  more  probably 
retain  the  conjunction,  as,  "I  informed  him  that  I 
had  paid  my  respects  to  the  President."    w  163. 

THIS  MUCH  '  C  '^  believe  both  expressions  to 
be  correct;  not  so  elegant  perhaps  as  thus  much,  but 
at  the  same  time  more  fitted  for  colloquial  use.'' 
i  82.  So  of  this  high,  that  tall.  ' '  There  is  one  use 
of  <Aai  which  is  indefensible;  when  it  is  used  as  a 
qualifying  word  with  adjectives  not  denoting  extent, 

and  when  itself  must  be  explained  by  to  that  extent." 
i  83. 

The  (omitted  after  either  and  or).  "Result  is 
not  only  slovenly  English,  but  actual  confusion." 
aa  413.     Omitted  before  adjectives,     x  306. 

The  day  (for  to-day),     i  79. 

Their  (after  a  singular).  "But  if  a  customer 
wishes  you  to  injure  their  foot  or  to  disfigure  it,  you 
are  to  refuse  their  pleasure."  Ruskin.  His  is  the 
representative  pronoun,  as  mankind  includes  both 
men  and  women.  To  use  "his  or  her  "  in  cases  of 
this  kind  seems  to  me  very  finical  and  pedantic' 
aa  416,  431. 

Then  (as  an  adjective).  The  then  king,  r  348, 
X  207.  "Often  used  elliptically,  like  an  adjective, 
for  the  <A«n  existing."    VVb.     "To  have  enabled 


202  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Scott  or  his  friends  to  bear  his  then  condition." 
— Shairp. 

Thereafter  (for  thenceforth),     vv  109. 

Thews.  "  It  is  a  remarkable  evidence  of  the  in- 
fluence of  Shakspere  upon  the  English  language, 
that  while,  so  far  as  yet  has  been  observed,  every 
other  writer,  one  single  instance  excepted,  employs 
th^ws  in  the  sense  of  manners,  qualities  of  mind  and 
disposition,  the  fact  that,  as  often  as  he  employs  it, 
it  is  in  the  sense  of  nerves,  muscular  vigor,  has 
quite  overborne  the  other  use;  which  once  so  famil- 
iar in  our  literature,  has  now  passed  away."  p  207, 
qll7. 

Think  foi"  (for  think).  You  will  find  he  knows 
more  than  yon  think  for.     x  207,  n  90. 

This  much  (for  thus  much  by  way  of  apology). 

This  twenty  years  (for  these  twenty  years). 
z  120. 

Thither  (for  there).     See  Whither. 

Those  people  (for  that  'people  or  those  inhabi- 
tants), z  114. 
Those  sort  of  things.     See  Kind,    x  207. 

Those  w^ho  (for  they  that).  "  That  and  those,  as 
demonstrative  adjectives,  refer  backward,  and  are 
not  therefore  well  suited  for  forward  reference." 
Bain,   x  208. 

Thunderstruck.  "Our  language  seems  to  have 
nearly  established  a  difference  between  the  two 
forms  thunder  struck  and  thunder  stricken,  using  the 


THEREAFTER TORTUOUS.  208 

latter  to  express  the  actual  sense  of  blasting,  which 
the  former,  now  meaning  only  great  surprise,  is  no 
longer  able  to  convey. "    s  120, 

Tide  (formerly  used  for  hour,  and  vice  versa). 
a  235,  y  207. 

Till.  "  It  seemed  long  till  that  foolish  voice  was 
stilled." — Howell.  "So  this  barbarous  use  of  till 
peculiar  to  the  West."     vv  107. 

Tiresome  (for  ^i'n/i^').  "A  foVesome  journey."  y 
182. 

To.  "Equally  remarkable  is  the^vord  to  as  a 
kind  of  expletive,  the  infinitive  of  the  verb  that 
might  follow  it  being  universally  omitted,"  as  I 
meant  to  ask  him  to,  would  you  like  to  ?  tt  560,  x 
209. 

To  (for  at;  especially  in  to  home  and  after  to  be). 
tt  560,  X  209. 

To  (for  toward).  "  Assuming  an  attitude  to  him." 
Fronde,     a  50, 

To  (separated  from  the  infinitive).  See  Infini- 
tive.    X  209. 

To  the  muzzle  (of  loaded  guns),    d  95. 

Together  (superfluous).     We  conversed  together. 

3  118. 

Tongue  (for  language),     x  198. 

Tortiiou.s  (for  torturous).  "Here  is  a  Massa- 
chusetts lawyer  speaking  of  'unjust  and  tortuous 
legislation.'  The  context  clearly  shows  that  torturous 
was  the  word  he  designed  to  use,  though  probably 


204  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

he  has  never  noticed  that  these  are  two  words  of 
entirely  distinct  origin  and  widely  different  mean- 
ing."— iV.  C.  Advocate. 

Total.     See  Complete. 

Toward.  See  Forward,  x  209.  "  The  double 
forms,  toward  and  towards,  which  occur  in  King 
James's  Bible,  are  explained  in  the  same  way,  as 
also  the  employment  or  omission  of  the  final  s  in 
other  words  of  the  same  ending  in  other  English 
books  of  that  century.  It  should,  however,  be  here 
remarked  that  in  all  the  words  ending  in  — ward 
which  are  used  in  the  first  editions  of  that  transla- 
tion, with  the  exception  of  towards  and  afterwards, 
the  s  is  constantly  omitted,  according  to  what  seems 
to  be  the  fashionable  modern  usage;  althfmgh,  as  I 
think,  the  s  final  ought  to  be  retained  in  employing 
words  with  this  ending  as  adverbs  and  prepositions, 
and  dropped  when  they  serve  as  adjectives."  w431. 

Tradition.  ' '  Webster  in  his  dictionary  actually 
limits  its  sense  to  oral  communication  tcitJiout  written 
memorials,  a  limitation  the  strict  accuracy  of  which 
is,  however,  disproved,  strangely  enough  by  the 
very  instance  he  quotes  in  its  support :  '  Stand  fast, 
and  hold  the  traditions  which  you  have  been  taught, 
whether  by  word,  or  an  epistle'  (2  Thess.  ii.  15)." 
s52. 

Tramp  (as  a  noun),     d  129. 

Transpire  (for  take  place.)  "  So  I  find  it  said  in 
a  prominent  New  York  newspaper,  that  '  the  Mexi- 
can war  <ra««^Ve{?  in  1847.'    The  writer  might  as 


TOTAL TRIALS.  205 

well — aad,  considering  the  latitude  ia  which  the 
battles  were  fought,  might  better — have  said  that 
the  Mexican  war  perspired  in  1847.  There  is  a  very 
simple  test  of  the  correct  use  of  transpire.  If  the 
phrase  take  place  can  be  substituted  for  it,  and  the 
intended  meaning  of  the  sentence  is  preserved,  its 
use  is  unquestionably  wrong;  if  the  other  colloquial 
phrase,  leak  out,  can  be  put  in  its  place,  its  use  is 
correct."  a  166,  aa  393,  x  210.  In  its  etymology 
the  word  anecdote  ("not  given  out")  has  the  same 
restriction,  r  289.  "John  Randolph,  of  Virginia, 
had  a  very  tender  ear  for  good  English,  and  when, 
one  day,  a  Member  of  Congress  used  the  word  tran- 
spire repeatedly,  and  always  in  the  sense  of  occur- 
ing  or  taking  place,  he  bore  it  for  a  time,  but  finally 
lost  all  patience:  'May  I  interrupt  the  gentleman  a 
moment? '  he  asked.  '  Certainly,'  said  the  speaker 
*  Well,' said  Randolph,  '  if  you  use  the  word  <?■««.- 
spire  once  more,  I  shall  expire.' "  tt  562.  "This 
use  of  it  has  been  censured  by  both  English  and 
American  writers."     W. 

Transpike    (for  sweat).      "For    the  arrival   of 
which  you  have  been  praying,  trembling,  hoping, 

despairing,  sic ,  (I  beg  your  pardon,  I  believe 

the  word  is  not  used  in  good  society),  and  transpiring, 
for  the  last  hour." — Thackeray.  "  Manner  is  the 
constant  transpiration oi  character." — Mackintosh. 

Treat  (or  treat  of  dk  subject).     Indifferent,    i  116. 

TRIALS  (for  afflictions,  by  an   irreligious  man), 
a  62. 


206  VEKBAL    PITFALLS. 

Trifling  minuti^.     r  359,  x  210. 

Trooping  (of  a  boy).  "  ' Trooping  like  a  colt.' — 
Irving."  This  reminds  Mr.  Blackley  of  the  Irish 
soldier  who  captured  three  prisoners  by  surrounding 
them,     s  106. 

Truism  (for  truth).  "  A  truism  is  a  self-evident 
truth;  a  truth,  not  merely  the  truth  in  the  form  of  a 
true  assertion  of  fact.  Thus:  the  sun  is  bright,  is 
not  a  truism:  it  is  a  self-evident  fact,  but  not  a  self- 
evident  <r««7t."    a  169. 

TRIUMPHANT  (for  triumplial).  Obsolete  and 
rare.     Wb. 

Try  (for  make).    Try  an  experiment,  r  349,  x  211. 

Try  aud  (for  try  to),     r  365,  d  113,  bb  168. 

Tuition.  "One  defends  another  most  effectually 
who  imparts  to  him  those  principles  and  that  knowl- 
edge whereby  he  shall  be  able  to  defend  himself; 
and  therefore  our  modern  use  of  tuition  as  teaching 
is  a  deeper  one  than  the  earlier,  which  made  it  to 
mean  external  rather  than  internal  protection."  p  213. 


Ugly  (for  ill-tempered),  r  362.  "  H.  Reeves  states 
that  a  British  traveller,  walking  one  day  in  the  sub- 
urbs of  Boston,  saw  a  woman  on  a  doorstep  whip- 
ping a  screaming  child.  'Good  woman',  said  he, 
'why  do  you  whip  the  boy  so  severely?'  She 
answered,  'Because  he  is  so  ugly.'  The  Englishman 
walked  on,  and  put  down  in  his  journal:  Mem. 
American  mothers  are  so  cruel  as  to  whip  their  chil- 
dren because  they  are  not  handsome."  tt  563,  x  211. 

Ult.  (for  last  month),     a  169. 

Ultroueous  (for  wluntary).    c  57.     Obsolete, 
W.,  Wb. 
Un-     See  In-. 

Uncreditable.    v  260.    Obsolete.  W.  Wb. 
UNBEKNOWN,     x  211.     Colloquial.  Wb. 
Underhanded  (for  underJiand).  r  357,  x  211,  d  19. 
Underneath  (for  beneath),     d  25. 

Unclisprivacied.  "It  is  good  English,  but 
not  because  Mr.  Lowell  used  it."  a  407.  But  Mr. 
Hall  protests  against  it  "  explicitly  and  emphatic- 
ally."   V  193. 

Unexceptionably  (for  unexceptionally).  "  These 
observations  are  not  to  be  considered  as  unexception- 
ably constant,  but  as  containing  general  or  predom- 


208  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

inant  truth."  —  Dr.  Johnson,  v  201.  The  form 
' '  unexceptio7iaUy  "  is  not  given  by  either  W.  or  Wb. 

Union.  "The  Elder  Pliny  tells  us  that  the  name 
unio  had  not  very  long  before  his  time  begun  to  be 
given  [cf  is  being  done]  to  a  pearl  in  which  all  chief - 
est  [?j  excellencies,  size,  roundness,  smoothness, 
vfhiteuess,  weight,  met  and,  so  to  speak  were  united; 
and  as  late  as  Jeremy  Taylor  the  word  union  was 
often  employed  by  our  best  writers  in  this  sense, 
namely  that  of  a  pearl  of  rare  and  transcendent 
beauty."    p  218. 

Unique  (for  beautiful).  "  A  thing  is  unique 
when  it  is  the  only  one  of  its  kind,  whether  it  is 
good  or  bad,  ugly  or  beautiful."     aa  375. 

Universal.     See  All.     x  211. 

Universe  (for  world),     d  93. 

Unprincipled.  "  Too  firmly  established  in  Eng- 
lish to  admit  of  challenge."    c  56. 

UNmp^^    ["JoHHsoN  sanctions  the  use  of  the 

negative  prefix  of  these  two  words,  but  Richardson 
and  Webster  condemn  it  as  superfluous.  Walton 
in  his  Angler,  tells  an  amusing  anedcdote  touching 
the  two  words.  We  heard,  he  says,  a  high 
contention  among  the  beggars,  whether  it  was  easi- 
est to  rip  a  cloak  or  tinrip  a  cloak.  One  beggar  af- 
firmed it  was  all  one;  but  that  was  denied  by  ask- 
ing her,  if  doing  and  undoing  were  all  one.  Then 
another  said  'twas  easiest  to  unrip  a  cloak,  for  that 
was  to  let  it  alone ;  but  she  was  answered  by  asking 


UNION USE. 


209 


how  she  could  unrip  it,  if  she  let  it  aloue."  r  324. 
"Fuller  evea  employs  the  verb  to  ungray  hair  in  the 
sense  of  to  pull  out  gray  hairs."     y  155. 

UNREADABLE  (for  illegible),  ppp  299.  Al- 
lowed by  W. 

Unvalued.  '"This  and  unvaluable  have  been 
usefully  desynonymized ;  so  that  invaluable  means 
now  having  a  value  greater  than  can  be  estimated, 
unvalued  esteemed  to  have  no  value  at  all  "  p 
219. 

Unwell.  •'  To  say  truth,  in  the  vernacular  lan- 
guage of  England,  umoell  is  not  commonly  employ- 
ed, except  between  men,  in  the  general  sense  of 
indisposed.  Women  avoid  it,  unless  talking  among 
themselves;  and  then  they  use  it  for  the  most  part 
euphemistically."  v  125.  See  remarks  on  another 
word.     tt. 

Up  (as  a  verb).     "  Tips  and  tells  me  all."     tt  563. 

Upward  of  (for  nrrre  than),     x  211, 

Use.  "  We  find  rather  curious  combinations.  I 
didn't  use,  I  hadn't  med,  I  wasnt  used.  This  latter 
would  be  legitimate  enough  if  the  verb  were  used  to, 
meaning  accustomed  by  use  to.  We  may  say,  I 
wasn't  used  to  the  practice.  But  it  will  be  plain  that 
it  is  a  different  meaning  of  which  I  am  now  speak- 
ing. A  friend  tells  me  that  in  his  part  of  the  world 
the  people  say  didn't  used  to  teas;  and  a  midland 
correspondant  in  his  town,  even  in  good  society. 
used  to  could.  If  you  ask  me  what  we  are  to  say  in 
this  case,  I  must  reply  that  I  can  answer  very   well 


210  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

on  paper,  but  not  so  well  for  the  purposes  of  com- 
mon talk.  liised  not  to  see  him  at  my  uncle's,  does 
not  convey  the  idea  that  it  was  not  your  habit  to 
meet  him  there.  It  rather  means  that  he  was  there, 
but  that  for  some  unexplained  reason  you  did  not 
see  him.  You  meant  to  express  something  which 
it  was  your  practice  not  to  da,  but  something  which 
it  was  not  your  practice  to  do.  I  never  used  is  better, 
but  it  may  be  too  strong.  I  am  afraid  there  is  no 
refuge  but  in  the  inelegant  word  needn't,  to  which  I 
suppose  most  of  us  have  many  times  been  driven." 
1238. 

Used  to  be.    tt  646. 

Utter  (for  per/ecO.     a  170.     "  We  can  say  wWer 
discord,  but  not  utter  concord. "     x  311. 

(ioxsay).     x  211. 

Uttermost  (for  innermost).     "Penetrated   the 
uttermost  recesses."— Landor.     c  22. 


Vast  (for  large),     x  212. 

Vengeance  (for  revenge).  "Vengeance{^\ih.  the 
verb  to  avenge)  should  never  be  ascribed  save  to  God, 
or  to  men  acting  as  the  executors  of  his  righteous 
doom."    ppp  296. 

VENTILATE  (for  bring  into  discussion).  Defend- 
ed, a  171.   See  Desirability.    tt564.    Obsolete.  W. 

Veracity  (for  truth.)  "These  two  points  have 
nothing  more  to  do  with  the  veracity  of  the  Christian 
religion  than  chemistry." — Dr.  Scott,  c  60.  '•Verac- 
ity is  merely  an  anglicized  Latin  synonym  of  truth- 
fulness. Truth  and  veracity  is  a  weak  pleonasm. 
But  veracity  is  properly  applied  to  persons,  truth  to 
things.  A  story  is  or  is  not  true,  a  man  is  or  is 
not  veracious — if  truthful  is  too  plain  a  word."  a 
171,  X  212. 

Verandah  (for  porcli).    r  108. 

Verbal  (for  oral).  "To  this  very  phrase,  'by 
roo7'd  of  mouth,'  we  may  perhaps  ascribe  the  error 
of  using  verbal  for  oral.  So  in  Moore's  Life  of  Byron, 
p.  3,  there  is  quoted  a  letter  from  the  Earl  of 
Shrewsbury,  who  speaks  of  '  good  reasons  that  I  can 
tell  you  when  we  meet,  jitter  for  tcords  tJian  writing, ' 
as  if  one  could  write,  any  more  than  speak,  without 
words."     c  57. 


212  VKRB.lL    PITFALLS. 

VERBALS  (without 's)  "  'Poor  livings  in  the  dio- 
cese of  Oxford  are  a  scandal,  but  Mr.  Disraeli  prescrib- 
ing polity  and  dictating  the  doctrines  of  the  Church 
of  England  are  [is]  a  greater.'  Here  are  would  have 
been  right,  had  the  reviewer  written  'Mr.  Disraeli's.' 
One  man's  actions  may  be  more  than  one,  i.  e.,  plu- 
ral, but  the  man  himself  cannot  be  so."    c  135. 

Verity  (for  truth),    v  103. 

Very.  "  In  the  third  edition  of  Professor  Maxi- 
milian MiiUer's  Lectures  on  the  Science  of  Language 
we  are  informed  that  '  in  fact,  very  pleased  and  very 
delighted  are  Americanisms  which  may  be  heard 
even  in  this  country.'  *  *  The  phrases  just  named 
become  however  in  Professor  Mliller's  fourth  edi- 
tion simply  '  expressions  which  may  be  heard  in 
many  drawing  rooms.'  *  *  And  there  they  were 
heard,  without  question,  four  or  five  centuries  ago." 
v  54.  "Before  participles,  very  is  followed  by  much, 
or,  more  rarely,  by  some  nearly  equivalent  adverb." 
Wb. 

"  This  very  small  word  is  very  often  used  in  the 
English  language  when  a  sentence  would  be  very 
much  stronger  and  the  meaning  very  much  more 
forcible  without  it.  If  a  man  has  not  much  hair  on 
the  top  of  his  head,  it  is  not  enough  for  people  to 
say  simply  that  he  is  bald,  but  he  is  very  bald.  A 
man  is  not  stingy,  but  he  is  very  stingy,  when  the 
one  good  strong  word  '  stingy  '  would  put  the  whole 
point  forcibly.  A  doctor  of  divinity  is  not  learned, 
but  very  learned;  a  doctor  of  medicine  is  not  crotch- 
ety, he  is  very  crotchety,  while  a  lawyer  is  not  cun- 


VEKBALS VERY.  213 

nine,  but  very  cunning.  In  the  same  way,  a  young 
lady  is  not  handsome,  but  very  handsome.  The 
qualifier  has  become  so  common  that  it  is  weakening 
to  the  word  it  is  joined  to.  In  nine.cases  out  of  ten 
where  very  is  used  to  intensify  human  speech,  a  sin- 
gle, bold  word  without  the  very  would  hit  the  mean- 
ing like  a  hammer,  and  drive  it  home  with  a 
directness  unknown  to  clogged  and  hampered 
expression. 

"  'Very  seems  to  be  a  word  designed  by  provi- 
dence for  young  ladies  to  express  their  feelings  with. 
This  portion  of  the  community  probably  could  not 
get  on  without  their  adverb,  but  the  English  of  the 
rest  of  the  race  would  be  strengthened  if  the  little 
qualifier  were  delegated  almost  wholly  to  the  fair 
class  to  whom  it  belongs.     It  creeps  into  our  litera- 
ture as  insidiously  as  the  measles  into  a  family  of 
fifteen,  and,  once  there,  it  stays  like  an  office-seeker, 
It  breaks  out  everywhere,  even  in  the  most  nigh 
toned    and    '  cultivated '    writing.     A    newspaper, 
which  is  authority  on  the  art  of  literary  composition 
prints,  for  instance,  a  thrilling  description  of  a  bril 
liant  party .  Every  lady  present  was  very  much  this 
or  that.     Mrs.    Blank,   who   was  a  very  intimate 
friend  of  Mrs.  General  Dash,  wore  a  very  handsome 
green  satin  dress,  and  had  a  very  handsome  silver 
comb  in  her  back  hair,    Mrs.  General  Dash  wore  an 
exceedingly  becoming  dress,  which  was  very  elabo- 
rately  made.     Two  young  ladies,   whose  dresses 
were  exceedingly  becoming  and  very  graceful,  were 
accompanied  by  a  young  man  who  had  a  very  light 


214  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

moustache.  Everybody  was  either  'very,'  or  'ex- 
ceedingly,' or  'most  highly'  something.  The  air 
bristled  with  superlatives. 

"It  combines  instruction  with  amusement  to 
count  the  '  veries  '  in  a  column  of  newspaper  adver- 
tisements. A  '  general  housework  '  applicant  is  not 
content  with  being  a  respectable  woman  and  a  good 
cook.  She  is  a  very  respectable  woman  and  a  very 
good  cook.  It  is  enough,  in  all  conscience,  to  be 
said  of  a  woman  that  she  is  a  superior  waitress. 
Superior  itself  means  better  than  good,  but  this 
uncommon  waitress  tacks  on  the  word  'very,'  too, 
and  thus  becomes  very  better  than  good. 

"  The  climax  of  veriness  is  reached,  however,  by 
a  girl.  She  is  '  a  very  competent  cook,  understands 
waiting  at  table  in  a  very  efficient  manner,  and  is  in 
all  respects  very  lirst-class.'  'In  all  respects  very 
first'class  qualifications'  is  good.  It  is  only  equalled 
by  the  young  man  who  was  a  very  perfect  horseman 
and  rode  a  very  black  horse.  A  fine  example,  too, 
of  the  redundant  '  very  '  is  the  reply  of  the  old  tar 
who  was  blown  overboard  at  Trafalgar,  and  rescued 
with  much  difficulty,  and  who,  long  afterwards, 
being  asked  by  a  sympathetic  lady  how  he  felt  on 
that  occasion,  answered:  '  Wet,  ma'am,  very  wet.'  " 
—  Cincinnati  Commercial. 

Vicinity.  Say  New  York  and  its  vicinity,  not 
New  York  and  vicinity,     a  172,  x  214. 

"Violincello  (for  violoncello).  "There  was  a 
stringed  instrument  which  has  long  been  disused, 
and  which  was  called  the  violone.     It  was  large,  and 


VICINITY — VULGAR.  215 

very  different  from  the  violino.  A  small  iostrument 
of  the  kind  was  made,  and  called  the  violoncello  {cello 
being  an  Italian  diminutive);  and  this,  somewhat 
modified,  is  the  modern  instrument  of  that  name. 
Violincello  would  be  the  name  of  a  little  violin; 
whereas  a  violoncello  is  four  times  as  large  as  a 
violin.  A  similar  contraction  of  word  and  thing 
has  given  us  clarinet  {clarinetto)  from  clarino."  a  101. 

VrvACiTY.  "Longevity  is  a  comparatively  mod- 
ern word  in  the  language.  Fimc%, which  has  now 
acquired  the  mitigated  sense  of  liveliness,  served 
instead  of  it,  keeping  in  English  the  original  sense 
which  vivacitas  had  in  Latin."    p  222. 

Vocation.     See  Avocation. 

Vulgar  (for  immodest),  a  173,  x  215.  "The 
word  'vulgarity'  was  formerly  thought  to  mean 
indecent;  now  it  simply  means  bad  manners.  To 
be  vulgar  is  to  be  inadmissible  to  society.  Vulgar 
people  are  low,  mean,  coarse,  plebeian,  no  matter 
where  the  ever-turning  wheel  of  fortune  has  placed 
them." — The  Queen.  The  frequent  use  of  this  word 
as  a  term  of  reproach  is  an  exemplification  of  the 
sentiment  intended  to  be  condemned.  "The  creed 
of  poetry,"  says  Bishop  Heber  (Brampton  Lectures, 
1815),  "is  the  creed  of  the  vulgar."  Suppose  that, 
and  that  only,  were  quoted,  how  many  would  at 
once  infer  that  he  disapproved  of  poetry.  But  see 
how  he  goes  on:  "The  lofty  strains  of  Pindar 
resounded  through  the  streets  of  Elis  and  Corinth, 
and  amid  the  promiscuous  and  crowded  solemnities 


216  vb;rbal  pitfalls. 

of  republican  festivals.  Menander  was  the  darling 
of  the  Athenian  stage,  and  the  hymn  which  placed 
Harmodious  in  the  green  and  flowery  island  of  the 
blessed,  was  cliaunted  by  the  potter  at  the  wheel  and 
enlivened  the  labors  of  the  Pirasan  mariner."  Vul- 
gar means  only  common, — indeed,  some  even  go  so 
far  as  repeatedly  to  use  the  word  common  as  signifi- 
cant of  something  beneath  them.  This  is  assump- 
tion in  its  most  odious  form. 

Wagon.  The  English  spelling  is  always  waggon. 
tt  565. 

Wainscot.  In  English  building-trade,  confined 
to  a  particular  kind  of  oak  that  grows  in  Holland, 
p  223. 

"Waut  of  {for  want  with).  "What  can  the  Em- 
peror want  of  these  provinces?"  is  very  good  English, 
if  we  mean,  "what  request  has  he  to  make  of  these 
provinces?"  But  if  we  mean,  "  what  does  he  want 
icith  these  provinces?"  i.  e,,  "  what  need  has  he  of 
these?"  then  it  is  a  vulgarism."     i  161. 

War  (for  dispute).     X. 

Waru't  (for  wasn't).  "Heard  only  as  a  vulgar- 
ism."   195. 

Was  (for  is,  of  general  truths),  r  366,  x  215,  d 
111.     See  also  i  164.     See  you  icas. 

Was  given,  presented,  etc.  "Eternal  vig- 
ilence  is  the  price  of  liberty,  and  constant  attention 
is  the  price  of  good  English.  There  is  one  fault, 
originating,  as  we  suppose,  with  our  esteemed 
friends  the  reporters,  which  perpetually  reappears 


I 


WAGON "WELL.  217 

in  spite  of  all  castigation,  and  of  which  we  find  a 
startling  example  in  the  columns  of  yesterday's 
Times.  Herr  William  Knaack,  the  clever  German 
comedian,  says  our  contemporary,  was  given  a  bene- 
fit at  the  Thalia  Theatre  last  evening.  This  sort  of 
phraseology  is  exceedingly  vicious.  It  is  hard  to 
understand  the  depravity  of  its  invention.  It  means 
that  a  benefit  was  given  to  Mr.  Knaack,  or  that  Mr. 
Knacck  took  a  benefit;  yet  the  infernal  ingenuity 
of  the  reporters  contrives  to  frame  a  sentence  in 
which  there  are  two  nominatives  and  only  one  sing- 
ular verb.  The  worst  of  it  is  that  the  corrupting 
influence  extends  even  to  writers  who  are  ordinarly 
careful  and  elegant." — JSf.  Y.  Sun, 

Waxen.     See  Golden. 
Ways  (for  way).    A  good  ways  on. 
Way  (for  weigh,  in  the  phrase  under  weigh),     vv 
107.      Under  iceigh  is  not  sanctioned  by  W.  or  Wb. 

Weaponed.     a  407. 

Wearies  (for  is  wearied).  He  icearies  of  such 
stuff,     r  344. 

Well  (as  an  adjective.  "The  xcell  understand- 
ing of  speech."     e  I  344. 

Well.  "Used  by  Americans  with  peculiar 
fondness  to  begin  almost  every  sentence,  but  especi- 
ally an  answer  to  a  question.  This  custom  seems  to 
have  originated  in  New  England,  where  it  is  still 
most  generally  prevailing,  in  order  to  gain  time 
before  replying,  as  the  Yankee  is  commonly  accused 
of  answering  only  by  a  new  question.     He  therefore 


218  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

dwells  upon  the  well,  perhaps  even  repeats  it,  and, 
as  J.  R.  Lowell  quaintly  remarks,  gives  it  '  a  vari- 
ety of  shades  of  meaning.conveyed  by  the  difference 
of  intonation,  and  by  prolonging  or  abbreviating, 
which  I  should  vainly  attempt  to  describe.  A 
friend  of  mine  told  me  that  once  he  heard  five 
different  wells,  like  pioneers,  precede  the  answer  to 
an  inquiry  about  the  price  of  land."    tt  566. 

Wended  (for  went).  "  '  To  wend  one's  way '  is  a 
perfectly  correct  expression.  '  He  wended  his  way ' 
is  caused  by  the  writer's  ignorance  of  the  fact  that 
went,  which  we  use  as  the  irregular  preterite  of  the 
verb  'to  go,'  is  in  fact  the  regular  preterite  of  the 
\ev\>  to  wend."    sill.     But  see  v  56. 

Went  (for  gone,  participle),     v  58,  n  80. 

Wert  (for  wast),     s  103.     But  see  v  77. 

What  (superfluous).  "Not  a  thing  stolen,  but 
what  the  sea  gave  it  up  again  faithfully." — J.  P. 
Newman.  This  gross  vulgarism  much  surprises  us 
in  Dr.  Newman.  It  is  still  frequent  in  inferior 
writers."    v  263,  x  315 

What?  (in  reply  to  a  question  not  understood). 
In  answer  to  "Crito,"  you  suggest  in  a  late  num- 
ber of  the  Spectator  that  perhaps  the  best  form  of 
expression  in  answer  to  a  question  or  speech  not  at 
once  understood  is  the  English  "Beg  pardon.''  It 
is  certainly  better  than  the  common  "Sir?"  ot 
"Madam?"  or  "  What?  "  or  (God  forbid)  "  Which?' 
of  this  country,  but  it  is,  nevertheless,  objectionable 
to  Americans  because  it  is  not  only  very  distinctive- 


WENDED WHETHER.  219 

ly  English,  but  it  has  become  witli  certain  snobs  of 
our  city,  a  very  disgusting  affection,  noticeable 
particularly  in  the  rising  inflection  and  in  the  broad 
"a"  and  a  long  drawl  of  the  phrase.  Why  not 
adopt  the  simple  "Excuse  me?"  It  expresses  all 
the  other  does,  and  to  my  view  is  quite  as  musical 
and  smooth.  You  were  wrong  in  your  article  when 
you  say  that  the  only  French  equivalent  is  "  Que  ?" 
translated  "  What  ?"  "  Quoi  ?"  is  the  French  word 
for  the  American  "  What?"  but  you  will  never  hear 
an  educated  Frenchman  use  the  word  "  Quoi  ?"  in 
the  place  of  the  English  "Beg  pardon."  Among 
the  common  people  of  Paris,  on  the  street  and  in 
cafes,  the  usual  demand  for  a  repetition  of  some- 
thing said,  is  "  Comment?"  in  English  "  How?"  and 
in  polite  socity,  addressing  ladies  and  persons  of 
quality,  the  invariable  phrase  is  "Plait-il?"  "  Please 
you  or  it  ?"  in  English. 

Better  than  all  these,  I  suggest,  is  "Excuse  me." 
— Spectator,  St.  Louis. 

What  (for  that).  I  don't  know  but  what  I  shall 
go.    n  93. 

Wharves.  Here  we  say  wJiarvcs,  while  in  Eng- 
land toharfs  is  considered  alone  admissible."  tt  351, 
dll6. 

Whether.     "  A  contraction  of  which  of  either, 
and  therefore  cannot  be  correctly  applied  to  more 
than  two  objects."  r351.     Often  improperly  repeat- 
ed, as,  I  have  not  decided  wJiether  I  shall  go  or 
[icJietJier  I  shall]  stay,     x  215,  n  88. 


220  VERBAL    PITFALLS. 

Whether  or  no  (for  lohether  or  not),  d  137. 
"  An  esteemed  correspondent,  who  devotes  critical 
powers  of  unwonted  acuteness  to  the  discussion  of 
questions  of  grammar  and  philology,  favors  us  with 
his  views  against  the  ordinary  colloquial  phrase, 
'whether  or  no. '  Our  correspondent  admits  that  it  is 
a  well-established  part  of  English  speech.  There 
is  no  colloquial  phrase  he  says,  so  universal.  Every- 
body uses  it.  And  yet  he  goes  on  to  argue  that  if  it 
is  analytically  examined,  it  is  not  accurate.  Well, 
what  of  that  ?  The  fact  that  it  is  idomatic,  and 
that  it  is  used  by  educated  and  intelligent  people, 
is  enough.  There  is  no  use  in  attempting  to  recon- 
struct the  English  tongue  according  to  the  iron  rules 
of  exact  reasoning.  The  language  is  idiomatic;  it  is 
free ;  it  is  tlueut ;  and  that  is  what  makes  its  excellence. 
If  our  correspondent  had  his  own  way,  we  fear  he 
would  do  serious  injury  to  one  of  the  noblest  in- 
struments of  human  thought." — N.  T.  Sun. 

Which.  Not  the  neuter  of  wJio,  but  a  compound 
word  made  up  of  w/w  and  like.  Hence  in  former 
usage  v'lio  identifies,  ichich  classifies,  i  91.  Hall 
pronounces  this  distinction  gratuitous,     vv  7. 

Which  (for  that).  "  She  would  be  all  which  the 
Emperor  could  desire."    Froude.     a  49. 

R.  G.  W.  quotes  the  following  to  illustrate  the 
misuse  of  icoukl  and  which,  calling  them  test  words 
as  to  the  mastery  of  idiom  : 

"  The  Bishop  of  Ross  undertook  that  his  mistress 
WJOwW  do  anything  w/iic/i  {Angl.  should  do  anything 
that)  the  Queen  of  England  and  the  nobility  desir- 
ed."   Froude.     a  51.    See  That,  x  216,  What. 


WHETHER  OE  NO WIDOW  AVOMAN.      221 

Which  ?  (for  vjhat  did  you  say  ?).     i  82. 
Whilst  (for  while),     d  26. 

Whither  (for  icJiere).  "Upon  my  arrival  hitJier." 
— Johnson.  Theoretically  JiitJier  is  unimpeachable, 
but  the  usage  of  our  best  writers  substitutes  here, 
there,  or  where,  for  hither,  thither  and  whither  in  this 
and  similiar  cases.  No  one  would  say,  "to  arrive 
to  a  place."    c  5£. 

Who  {tor  whom).  "The  distinction  between  them 
seems  to  be  disappearing,  and  I  believe  will  dis- 
appear." aa  275  "  On  the  supposition  that  the 
interrogative  wlto  has  lofiom  for  its  objective,  the  fol- 
lowing are  errors:  "who  do  you  take  me  to  be?" 
'* who  is  it  by?"  But  considering  that  these  ex- 
pressions occur  with  the  best  writers  and  speakers, 
that  they  are  more  energetic  than  the  other  form, 
and  that  they  lead  to  no  ambiguity,  it  may  be  doubt- 
ed whether  grammarians  have  not  exceeded  their 
province  in  condemning  them."  Bain.  See  x  316, 
n  71,  91. 

WHOLE  (for  all).  "The  whole  steps  of  the 
Christian  life."    r  357,  x  218.    See  Complete. 

Whom  (for  icho).     i  191,  x  216.    See  Who. 

Whose  (of  neuter  antecedents).  "We  should 
scruple  to  say,  '  I  passed  a  house  ichose  windows 
were  open. "  w  396.  Yet  in  Man  and  Nature  Mr. 
Marsh  writes,  "  a  quadrangular  pyramid,  the  per- 
pendicular of  lohose  sides"  (p.  145).  v  348,  vv  6, 
X  218,  d  89. 

Widow  woman  (for  widow),  a  172,  d  68,  x  219. 


It  ■ .  T)T  ^st  date  stamped  below 

iiiaimal  iv.^il  j  .. .  J- Iff   Jext-Bao  "''    .11  tiielirstgraf'     *irs' 

of  public      '     'I".    BasoH  n-  s  method  of  te;  leiii^, 

tary  nun  ^oar  51 

PnpiVs  iiiuuion.    buai^^j,  .^..10,  pj,.  '    3 

lughes   (James  L.)    Mistakes  in   Teaching.     American  Jiuuion.     With 

Contents  and  Index     Clotli,  16ino.  pp.  135 & 

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